Beyond the Stars
by cherryvanillaaa
Summary: "Keep your silence or reach for a life beyond the stars. Save your mercy for someone who needs it more. I'm the guilty. All the feelings come crashing down on me, I'm taking you with me." M for Mature
1. Erase My Scars

**Summary:**

 **Layla is a recovering heroin addict on a rehabilitation ship out in deep space; the mission is for the junkies in recovery to build housing for colonies on a new planet that is found to be safe for human existance, therefore giving them a second shot at life without sending them to prison. Basically killing two birds with one stone. However, Layla soon uncovers a secret that Weyland-Yutani Corp. is hiding from the public, and when there's an alien outbreak aboard the ship, she is unsure if she will make it back to Earth to share her gruesome discovery.**

"Broke! Inside  
This life, you can never be reborn within  
I came this far, erase my scars  
Fight! This time  
Inside, take a break from the lie you live  
I came this far, erase my scars"  
~ 'Erase my Scars' - Evans Blue

The sound of birds chirping woke her up, along with a steady stream of warm light she was aware of even though her eyes were closed. She allowed one eye, the one closest to her pillow, to slowly crack open. The light was not blinding, but rather _awakening_ , if that made any sense. Not harsh, but warm and inviting. _Wake up, you are welcome here._ Along with the birds and a faint gentle breeze causing leaves on the trees to rustle, it really was paradise.

Too bad it was fake.

She let her other eye open to observe the simulation of said paradise, the image of a sunny summer morning being shown back at her. The image, though a lie, was definitely crafted well. The whole idea of having scenery simulated on the walls of one's bedroom was a definite jackpot. It was both practical and impractical at the same time. Something crazy, but with just enough sense poured into it that it made the whole thing justifiable. The idea, of course, was to soothe the brain into thinking you were somewhere peaceful, serene, safe. She wondered then if there would be some sort of advanced setting upgrade where there was, like, a _rock concert_ going on in the background, or a _derby_. That would most definitely defeat the whole 'soothing' purpose of the thing though, so probably not. Just another one of those weird little things she wondered. Hell, there wasn't much in here to do but wonder.

 _She_ was Layla Thomas, and _here_ was a floating hunk of metal in deep space that housed junkies and recovering drug addicts. Who knew a few hundred years ago that there would be flying rehabilitation centers zooming through the sky, past planets? If they were zooming though, Layla thought, it would probably be much more fun. Not like any of them would really be able to tell anyways. Windows were limited to none, and most of the patients weren't allowed near them. Mainly because recovering druggies could be very dangerous, especially when coming down off of meds or still on the last gasp of their previous high. Druggies, like psychos, had very little concept of pain when doped up, and could display an incredible amount of strength, even if they were not but skin and bones. These corporate suits weren't going to take any chances. Not even on a 5'3 dirty blonde with curvy legs and big brown doe eyes.

Layla lifted her head off of her pillow to fully inspect the image of a maple tree to her right; it probably might've been a bit more believable had the floor also had some sort of simulated grass. It went from the beautiful flowery-grassy-lovely scenery on the wall straight to stark white, cold tile.

With a tired sigh, she shifted on the memory foam mattress to reach to the nightstand, conveniently next to the tree, for the remote. There were a few settings that she favored over the others - one of them being this sunny morning that was displayed right now. But her _favorite_ was the ocean setting, which was what she switched to now. Immediately, the green grass melted away to become blue foaming waves, surrounding her with gentle crashing noises of the tide. The birds chirping became seagulls squalling in the distance, and the yellow streaming sunlight became a creamy pink, orange and blue tye-dye. The color of the sky when the sun rose. Layla settled back onto the bed with another sigh; this one of longing.

She missed Earth, missed her family, missed her _freedom_. And she missed the ocean. A phenomenon she'd only experience the beauty of a handful of times, but she visited it every day in her memory. Her obsession went so far that she had a mermaid tattoo on the back of her left shoulder. Sometimes she scoffed at herself; twenty-five years old and she still wanted to be a mermaid when she grew up.

The drug use hadn't done anything to dull her overactive imagination. If anything, it had increased it. Kind of what she'd been counting on when she'd taken her first hit. Heroin had been her poison of choice. God damn old bitch had caught her at her worst moments and had helped her to fly. She was glad it was gone, but missed it all the same. The withdrawal had been God awful; spewing from both ends, screaming and crying, night sweats, insomnia... If she ever thought she'd been close to death before, it was _nothing_ compared to what she'd gone through then. She'd honestly thought she was dying; honestly had wanted to go rather than endure another day of the unbearable pain.

Finally sitting up in her bed, Layla looked down at her left arm, the inside of her elbow. The track marks were very visible still, even after three months. They would probably remain in sight for the rest of her life. She frowned at how purple/brown/ugly they looked, like ticks dotting her skin. They'd look much better if she still had her tan - too bad the simulated sunlight couldn't do that for her. It looks real, it sounds real, but it ain't real.

A keyboard note softly sounded out through the room, signifying the presence of somebody outside her door. There was no point in telling them to _come in_ or _fuck off_. They couldn't hear her. This room was totally soundproof from the outside. The only means of contact was the little clear rectangular device on her nightstand. It would contact a nurse should she need something, and aid as a panic button for emergencies. Other than that, everyone could come and leave as they pleased freely through those doors. Everyone but her.

Layla wasn't exactly sure how many patients besides her there were on this ship. She knew it was big; as big as a commercial towing vehicle, or a medical facility. And they probably wouldn't be going through all this trouble for just her and a few other junkies, so she assumed there was more than a mere handful of them.

The entire point of her being on this floating hunk of junk was so that she could help build housing for colonies on another planet light years away from Earth. There were plenty of rehab centers on Earth that could have helped her, but none that would teach her whatever lesson she was about to be taught. Also, none that would have their own benefit of workers that didn't need to be paid. Layla, unfortunately, hadn't been a good girl back on Earth when it came to her drug problem. And upon being caught, she had run from the cops. Busted for heroin, evading arrest: all factors of the situation spelled _bad news_ for her and her future. In court, she was given a choice: prison, multiple charges, her life ruined because of her own stupid mistake. Or, hopping aboard one of Weyland-Yutani's massive ships (since that company was the founding father of most of their technological advancements), and helping them build a few homes on a barren wasteland of a planet. Afterwards, they would let her off scott-free, clean slate. It almost sounded too good to be true, aside from the fact that they would have to be gone for more than a year from their homes back on Earth.

Sparing herself and her family the messiness and pain of prison, plus all of the combined contributions, Layla took the chance she was offered. Honestly, both options sucked, but plan C, aka. _not getting caught_ , hadn't worked out too well either. She'd brought it upon herself; addiction was truly a disease. So many times she had thought about quitting, but as destructive as the drugs had been, they'd also been the only thing that actually calmed her, soothed her mind. That needle in her arm had brought her solace, even though it was destroying her. Lustrous golden hair was now dull and stringy. Tan skin was now pale with track marks and bruises, veiny and death-like. She had dark circles under her eyes that hadn't gone away in months. At least now though she could sleep - when she had first gone off the drugs, sleep had been non-existent.

The doors slid open to reveal a female nurse, _Janine,_ she thought her name was. _Janine, Jenny, Geraldine_? She couldn't remember, nor did she really care. It sounded awful, but she had stopped caring about a lot ever since she had gotten into heroin. Things that used to matter didn't seem to anymore. That was one of the many reasons why she had wanted to quit, but the fear of things going back to how they had been completely scared her into putting down the spoon and the syringe.

"Morning doll, how ya doin' this mornin'?" the nurse, _Jeanette_ , she could now read on the nametag, said in a southern twang.

"Just _great_ ," Layla grumbled. How the fuck did she think she was doing? She immediately felt bad for her grumpiness. It wasn't this woman's fault she was in this situation. It was her own fault. She was even tired of blaming herself though. She did it all day, and especially when she tried to sleep. Did it in her dreams. It was a shitty situation all around. There had been _reasons_ for why she did what she did. _Good_ reasons. But she didn't want to think about them now. Now it was time to start the day.

"Brought you some new pants, figured you was gettin' tired of the old ones," Jeanette held out another pair of pants identical to the ones Layla was wearing. Layla refrained from rolling her eyes/giving a death glare. Humoring the nurse, she took the pants and made her way to the restroom near the exit. _If one more person tries to be funny, someone's gonna get punched, swear to God._

Hi guyssss, I needed to do a Xeno fic to get my Xeno fix in for Alien: Covenant (which I saw and loveeeeeedddd!) I hope you guys like this one! It's a bit darker than my Scar/Lex stories, and it will definitely be lacking the lovey dovey romance/cheesiness that makes up those lovelies 3 Enjoy! *I don't own the Alien universe, Xenomorphs ( :'( ), or any of the songs the chapter titles are based on. The title is based off of the song "Beyond the Stars" by Evans Blue 3


	2. Dark of the Day

"Fear... The sense of isolation  
The reason of it all  
The weakest generation  
The dark of the day  
The lies and the illusions  
The end of what we know  
The fading generation  
The dark of the day"  
~ 'Dark of the Day' - Semblant

Layla was slowly shuffling back to her room, the nurse in tow wearing her already thin patience even thinner. Therapy had been... _eventful_ today. Not for nothing, but she didn't want to spend her time sharing her story of woe in a group. If she had to tell, she would have much rather done it in a private setting. Not every living soul aboard this flying shitshow needed to know her business.

The only blessing was that today they hadn't even gotten to her, if you could call what had happened instead a _blessing_. Layla didn't think there was enough coldness in her heart to wish what had happened today on anyone. There hadn't been time for her to "share" her experience (which she almost always either declined or made something up - her business was her business). The circle for group therapy had barely gone halfway around before they were dismissed, abruptly. 'Unforseen outburst' was what they were calling it. They weren't wrong, technically. Outbursts were common amongst the junkies. This particular program was only a pilot; it had never been done before. For a pilot program, there had to be guinea pigs, and in this case it was druggies coming off of their high's and acting manic. Sudden fits were expected, much like when dealing with a group of patients in an asylum. Sometimes Layla felt like this was a nuthouse.

Todays particular outburst had come from a normally very quiet woman, Sharon. Middle aged, dark hair with silver streeks, bright green eyes in a shy face - Layla had never spoken to the woman, but could sense her calm energy. She wasn't sure exactly what had set off the normally mellow lady, but she had gone into hysterics. Her words almost seemed to be riddles; they held meaning, but that meaning wasn't easy to figure out.

It had been quiet, at first, when the therapist had called upon Sharon to share her stories. Everyone had looked to her, some with interest, others pretending to pay attention (because you couldn't sleep in therapy). Out of nowhere, it seemed, she burst into tears. Nobody really bat an eyelash; again, this was not uncommon, even for the quietest person. The first time Layla had cried in front of everyone, she'd hated herself. No one had noticed anything out of the ordinary until she'd started talking about eggs.

Yes, _eggs_.

It sounded silly; sounded normal, but that was what was weird about it. Especially since Sharon normally kept to herself, and had never displayed such hysteria before. It was nerve-wracking, to say the least. And it wasn't just a few tears; the lady was full on _sobbing_. Gasping for breath, wailing, on the verge of collapsing out of her chair... disturbing.

" _The eggs... so many, we're - We're_ -" Sharon had stammered out, her voice cracking and high pitched, terrified sounding. A murmur had started going around the group, inquiries and hushed anxieties being expressed. A nearby nurse quickly came over to help, grasping on the the harried woman's shaking shoulders, cooing softly into her ear.

" _No - NO_ -" Sharon sputtered, batting away the hands trying to soothe her as her voice became more shrill. " _It's real, I swear to God, oh Jesus-_ "

" _Honey, it's alright,_ " the nurse murmured, ushering for the orderlies that had just come in through the sliding metal doors to assist her, " _There is nothing that's going to happen to_ -"

" _We're all gonna die_ ," Sharon shrilled, her crying becoming more frantic. That was the moment that Layla truly felt the hair on the back of her neck stand up. " _They're gonna kill us all, I don't wanna die like that ohh God_ -"

" _We're going to need a sedative_!" the nurse had to practically shout to be heard over the crying woman, security guards and orderlies swarming into the area around her.

" _We're going to dispense with this group for the remainder of the afternoon_ ," the lead therapist said, his voice calm and at normal volume despite what was happening around him. " _You will all be escorted back to your rooms promptly._ "

And that was that. Layla briefly noticed Sharon being wrestled to the ground, her cries having turned into screams at that point, and then they were all shut out of the room.

Once the door slid shut, it went eerily silent out in the hall. The screams seemed to have ceased abruptly due to the soundproofing on the steel doors. For a moment, it was utterly quiet. Then, the nurses and orderlies left must have remembered they had jobs to do, and forced themselves to shake off the effect of the pure terror emnating from the woman in the room. The whole way back to her bedroom, Layla wondered what the cause of the breakdown was. Surely it had to have been something significant. She'd seen Sharon every single day for the past three months, and never once had she shown any indication of breaking under the pressure of this place. Layla also deduced though that since she was a very quiet person, she probably internalized things, and no indication of stress would have been shown.

Layla couldn't shake the feeling that something wasn't right, and felt even more of that dooming sense in her gut as she stepped through the sliding door to her room. What could have happened to cause such an attack of hysteria? What had the other woman seen? What did she know that everyone else didn't?

"Call if you require assistance," the nurse with the clipped English accent sent her off with, turning to leave before she'd even really entered the room.

"Hey, wait," Layla called out, voice scratchy from lack of use. She cleared her throat as the lady turned around, looking less than pleased at being kept from wherever she needed to hurry off to so fast. Holding her gaze evenly, albeit a little confrontationally, Layla inquired, "Any idea what Sharon was talking about in there? Something about eggs?"

The nurse, _Kathy_ , Layla could see on her nametag, suddenly straightened, eyes lighting on the young woman with an almost wary edge. _...the fuck is this old bat's problem_?

Kathy seemed to catch herself, giving a musical (fake) laugh, her previously cold demeanor melding into light-hearted regard. "Oh, probably the scrambled batch this morning that went out to the rooms. My stomach's feeling a little off too; no doubt she was just overreacting!" She smiled, as though trying to make it more convincing; trying to be _reassuring_ , was the vibe Layla was getting. "Hell, this food is enough to drive any of us crazy!"

Sensing that she wasn't about to get any more out of 'Kathy', and that she was being very poorly lied to, Layla smiled back at the other woman. If the nurse couldn't see how terrible her story was, then there was no way she'd be able to tell that Layla's smile was just as fake as hers had been.

"Get some rest, hon!" Kathy chirped, lingering a bit longer with a forced look of affection, before turning on her heel and striding purposefully down the hallway back the direction she had come. Layla also lingered, watching her until she disappeared around the corner. She stepped into her room, that sense of unease becoming even more prevalent the more she considered the events that had occured in the past two hours. What the hell was going _on_ in this place?

 _Hot_. It was _hot_. Ridiculously so. The blankets were sticking to her bare legs, the fitted sheet beneath her damp from sweat. _Why was it so hot_?

Layla opened her eyes blearily, glancing around the dark room.

Wait. _Dark_. She had fallen asleep to the ocean scene reflecting off of her walls, the full moon shining bright on her right side and creating a night-light like effect around the room. It was also silent, and she remembered being soothed into slumber by the lulling sound of gentle tides. _The hell_?

She tossed back the blankets that had been covering her body, squinting to attempt to see anything in front of her. She sat up on the side of the bed, her feet dangling off the edge trying to reach the floor. While the air in the room was hot and humid, the floor was blatantly cold, a stark contrast she noticed when her toes finally touched the hard surface. She held both hands out, taking careful steps forwards and to the sides so as not to run into anything. There wasn't much crowding the room, but now she was paranoid. She _knew_ she'd had that damn ocean scene on her walls - the waves were the only thing that could lull her to sleep.

Layla made her way towards the glowing, dim green lights on her door, hoping she could get them to open for her. If they were green, it was a good sign that they might. They were normally red, stopping her in her tracks; a warning. The lights indicated that they still had power; power loss would override all door access, and they all would have been wide open. She was counting on the possibility that it would still open for her - she needed air. This also helped her conclude that power loss was not the reason for her ocean scene being gone from the walls; there was something else at hand.

Her right hand suddenly touched something almost directly in front of her, and she jumped back with a squeak. Reaching her left hand out, she felt the end of the memory foam mattress on her bed. Whatever she had just walked into was at the foot of her bed. _Which has never been there before..._

With a gulp, Layla made herself brace and stepped forward again. Her right knee touched it first this time, and she lowered her hands to feel for the top of it. She didn't have to lower them far- it was large and tall, up to her ribs. The top of it was puckered, strangely, and when she slid her hands further down to explore, she felt that it was also slimy. _Disgusting_. She almost gagged at the feel. It also had a very odd smell; not bad, per say, but unlike anything she'd experienced before.

"What the-" When she felt movement under her hands from _inside_ the giant thing, she jumped back with an even louder shriek than before, " _Fucking fuck!_ Oh-" She gasped out, not sure if she had imagined it or if it had actually happened. As she had been feeling the thing, noting it's shape, plus the shock of movement, it kind of reminded her of an _egg_.

Layla felt a massive chill go up her spine at the thought, her brain connecting the events from earlier. She didn't believe in coincidences. Especially not when they happened like this. Events that were this close in sequence, this similar in cadence...

She'd decided at that point that she'd had enough, and quickly as she could in the dark, took off towards the door. There was a wet squelching sound coming from behind her, and she practically cried as the door did in fact open for her. The hallway was dim as well, but the few fluorescent lights at the tops of the walls for emergency purposes served to light the path she needed to take. Not even caring if her door closed behind her, Layla took off at a steady lope down the hall, her bare feet pounding on the floor, clanging over grates as she hit them.

Near the end of the corridor, another patient's room door beeped, indicating it was about to open. Layla slowed her run, hoping they knew something she didn't, like what the _hell_ was going on in this place. What came out the door though, she hadn't been expecting, and it made her scream and stumble back against the wall across from the door.

There was a patient standing in the doorway, but there was _something_ on his face. It kind of looked like a giant spider covering his entire head, absolutely fucking terrifying. Layla kept screaming, all rational thought leaving her head as she tried to edge past the guy. He was pulling at the thing's tail around his neck, reaching for her with the other hand. Torn between running and attempting to help him, she reached out and took his hand just as he collapsed onto the floor. "Oh my God! _Oh_ my _God_!" She dropped to her knees next to him, hands pulled back near her chest, wondering what on Earth she was going to do. He didn't appear to be moving, but she could see his chest rising and falling even in the dim lighting. Tears in her eyes, she realized that she had _never_ in her life been this terrified. "H- _HELP_!" She screamed, looking behind her to see if anyone else was about to come out of their rooms. Aside from the gentle hum that always emnated from the ship, it was completely quiet.

A squeak sounded from the direction she had run from, and she turned around just in time to see something fly directly at her head. She couldn't stop it before it encased her in total darkness, the force of whatever it was hitting her face causing her to fall back on the floor, writhing as she attempted to pull it off, her screams muffled. That lasted for about twenty seconds. Then, she felt a different kind of darkness pulling at her - the kind that stemmed from exhaustion and terror. She succumbed to it, falling into blackness, her body slumping against the cold floor.

Hi guys! I've worked long and hard on this chapter while I've also been working long and hard at my job XD So i'm hoping there aren't any errors/typos because i'm honestly more concerned with getting it up rather than editing XD 3 Enjoyyyyy


	3. Paralyzed

"You love to say that we just threw it away  
You took the high road when you walked away  
We'll live to fight another day in the game  
Whatever comes our way  
We're not paralyzed  
We're not paralyzed."  
~'Paralyzed' - Red Line Chemistry

She felt like she was on a really kickass high; one that had knocked her down with no intention of letting her get back up. She felt like she couldn't even lift her head; everything was so heavy.

Layla tried to open her eyes, even though her lids felt like they'd been glued together. Exhaustion had been immediate upon waking, and she would've been lying if she said she didn't debate just laying there, letting sleep take her over once more. However, there was a light pulsing behind her eyelids, which usually indicated that it was time to get up.

With a tired groan, she managed to peel her eyelids open, blinking the hard to get the haze of sleep out of her eyes. She brought her arms above her head to stretch, expecting to feel the blankets on her body shift with her movement. But they didn't. She tilted her head down, cracking her eyelids open so that she could see if maybe she'd kicked the blankets off. Wouldn't have been the first time.

The first thing she noticed was that there were no blankets. _Odd_. She had to sleep with at least a sheet at all times. It was that whole weird-comfort-thing; she dug blankets cloaked around her at all times. _This_ was abnormal.

The second thing she noticed was that she was not in her room. Actually, she had no idea where she was.

It was a very white, bright room, fluorescent lights beating down on her like a waterfall. Pushing through the exhaustion, she made herself sit up, her head pounding hard, her skull practically rattling from the pressure. The exam table she was laying on was not the most comfortable thing by any means; the cushion was hard and dug into her lower back. Looking around she saw there was only one door directly in front of her, and it had one very tiny miniscule window. _What the hell_?

Layla was guessing this had to do with whatever the hell that giant thing in her room had been... and whatever the hell had launched itself at her face the last time she was _conscious_ before here. Just thinking about that thing gave her the creepy crawlies. She'd never in her life seen anything like it, and she never wanted to see it again. As far as she could tell, it hadn't caused any lasting damage to her (other than that of her _sanity,_ of course). Her throat was a bit sore, but other than that she was fine as far as she could tell.

She slid down off the table, thanking the Lord that they had put her in a hospital gown that had a back on it. She'd had enough of the assless ones to last her a lifetime. Her bare feet made no noise as she padded over to the big, heavy looking door across the room. She had to stand up on her tiptoes to be able to peer outside, but from what she could tell she was in the medical bay. Not knowing exactly what was going on wasn't ideal by any means, but Layla was assuming that everything was under control (at least for the most part), since she was _here_. That thought slightly comforted her. _Slightly_.

But at the same time she was wondering how many more of those _things_ were out there. Had there been an outbreak? Was it a scientific experiment gone wrong? Were they just giant, mutated spiders with _tails_ that liked jumping on people's _faces_? The questions were endless.

Dropping back down on her feet, Layla let out a weary sign through her nose. She was weighing in her mind the benefits of crawling back up onto that horribly uncomfortable table and going to sleep. Blanket or not, she was sure she could catch some shut eye.

Suddenly, the lights flickered, and there came a deep rumbling sound of a generator starting up before a loud, frantic alarm started going off. Layla instantly felt the hair on the back of her neck stand up at the sound, and the timing of all of this. She was locked in a room that had nothing in it but a bed. No food, no weapons, not even a God damn fire extinguisher. That _had_ to be violating some sort of safety regulation.

She gulped when the lights flickered again, stepping behind the exam bed so that it was between her body and the door. A few muffled shouts could be heard coming from the hallway; she had no way of telling how far away the voices were, but she could hear them even with the alarm going off. _Shit was just getting weirder in this place_. She felt that familiar fear creeping back into her chest, her breaths becoming more labored with each passing second.

It was quiet for a moment, save for the alarm going off over her head.

Then, she heard pounding from outside the room, growing louder as she was assuming it neared her room. It sounded like someone was running. Whoever it was slammed facefirst into her door, making her jump back even though she wasn't anywhere close to it. There was a beep before her door gently slid open, contrasting with all the rest of the chaos going on around her. One of the orderlies scrambled into the room, terror alive in his eyes. Layla looked straight back at him, unsure of what to do. She had no idea what was going on.

The scared man hardly made it into the room before his _head_ exploded.

At least, that was what it looked like.

When her immediate surprise allowed her to actually process what was happening, she saw that his head had not necessarily _exploded_ , per say. Rather, a hole had been punched straight through his skull, whatever had done it still peeking out the front like some grotesque unicorn. She was so shocked and horrified that she couldn't make a sound - couldn't move. Layla barely even had time to react before it was abruptly yanked back out of his head. He fell to the floor; _collapsed_ was a more fitting term. There was nothing graceful about his demise. He crumpled in place like nothing more than a bag of bones; Layla had never seen someone die right in front of her, so she could barely summon breath into her lungs upon witnessing this. Especially in such a cruel way.

She almost collapsed much like the man in front of her when what had killed him was revealed from behind his body.

It was _big_ ; as black as the night sky but with a sheen of reflectiveness on it's "skin". It had long, spindly arms and legs, and from what she could comprehend in her state, a long barbed tail with a sharp tip at the end. It had a large, long head, no eyes that she could see, and several rows of sharp, silver teeth.

It was like anyone's worst nightmares come to life. And now it was looking right at her.

 **Hey all! Chapter 3 is now uppp and I know it's short, but I really wanted to post it before I go see aLIEN COVENANT TOMORROW NIGHT 3 3 I'm. So. Pumped. Aside from the shortness, I hope you guys enjoy! 4 is in the works, on it's way :D**


	4. New Way to Bleed

"I feel it coming over me  
I'm still a slave to these dreams...  
Is this the end of everything?  
Or just a new way to bleed?"  
~ 'New Way to Bleed' - Evanescence

She was going to die.

That was the only thought that went through her head as the monster lifted it's head and regarded her with hostility. She saw no eyes on the thing, but she knew it was looking at her. Knew it was aware of her presence, and of her fear.

With a hiss, it straightened up to it's full height - well over six feet tall, even without the length of it's abnormally long head. Layla cowered back against the wall behind her, torn between wanting to squeeze her eyes shut and wanting to keep her eyes on the creature. It was kind of strange to have an urge to watch imminent death come towards her.

Still hissing, drool dripping from those huge teeth, the creature slowly slinked fully into the room, focus locked on her. She noted that it had four, limb-like appendages, almost like bagpipes, coming out from the back of it's bony body. It walked with almost a hunch, but she could tell it was more of a hunting posture, like it was ready to launch itself at her at any moment, should she try and escape. It wouldn't have to worry about chasing her, she thought; her heart would probably give out on her if it got within a foot of her.

She slid down the wall onto her haunches. Trembling, Layla tucked her arms between her chest and her legs, pulling her knees up as close to her face as she could. She observed the monster slink gracefully into a crouch, continuing its advance on her without pause. She thought she would keel over on the spot when it came right up to her, long arms ending with clawed hands on either side of her body on the floor. That gaping jaw lowered to the place right above her knees, hot drool cascading onto her legs like a slimy, disgusting, hot waterfall. It she didn't die in a moment, she was going to throw up. And then it would kill her.

She wanted to close her eyes, but couldn't look away from the creature before her. She held her breath, not wanting to even move as she felt the heat from its jaws emanating onto her chin. It inhaled deeply through it's mouth. There were no nostrils she could see on its face, and still no eyes either. That didn't seem to cripple it in any way. Bats hunted blind. This, however, was no bat. It was a hell of a lot bigger, and a thousand times scarier than anything else she'd ever seen.

When the monster inhaled deeply once more, its face even closer to her now, she did close her eyes. What the hell was it waiting for? _If you're gonna do it, do it now._ She was close to passing out - it was hard to suck in oxygen in the state that she was in at the moment. All of the nightmares she'd ever had; every horror movie she'd ever watched and been afraid afterwards; it all paled in comparison to this moment. If she didn't have white streaks in her hair, she'd be shocked. When it still hadn't killed her, and she had no idea what was going on, she accidentally let out the tiniest of whimpers, a lone tear falling from one of her eyes and mingling with the drool coating her bare legs. Suddenly, the heat in front of her face was gone. Her heart palpitating even more now because she didn't know where the monster was, her face crumpled with terror, fresh tears now pouring freely from her eyes. She had no idea what to do. Was it _toying_ with her? Did it want her to try and run? Sucking up every ounce of courage she possessed, she slowly opened her eyes, expecting to see that snarling maw right in front of her face once more, or its tail poised in front of her throat about to impale her.

To her complete and utter surprise, the creature had backed off from her. It was still in front of her, but about an arms length from her right now. Not invading her personal space like the black plague, all up in her senses and clouding her judgement. It was actually crouched much like she was, looking as though maybe it was trying to mimic her position on the floor. On its haunches, its tail wrapped neatly around its body on the floor. Long, spindly arms were out in front of it though, instead of wrapped around its knees like hers were. The creatures clawed hands were pressed flat on the cold tile, and its head was tilted as it regarded her with interest. If there was ever a moment to _what the fuck_ , this was definitely it. A second ago, it had been crowding her, threatening and terrifying. Now, it was sitting here in front of her like they were just two friends having coffee together.

Layla was still afraid to move - afraid any little thing she did would further antagonize the already hostile thing... _alien_? Her mind working even though her body was still, she was trying to piece together exactly what the hell was going on here. Had _this_ been in that giant egg in her room? As big as the egg had been, this beast was still far too large to fit in there, unless it had wadded itself up like a tissue and squeezed itself in there. Unless it had been very tiny when it hatched? Part of her didn't even want to play detective any more; she just wanted to get the hell out of here _alive_.

Testing her theory, wanting to see how far she'd be able to push it now that it appeared to _not_ be hungry, Layla straightened her back against the wall, still watching the otherworldly being in front of her. It didn't move, other than the tip of its tail twitching against the floor like a cat. That tail... she really hoped that if this thing _did_ decide it wanted to kill her, it wouldn't skewer her with that tail. It was sharp tipped, and barbed all the way down. It would be a painful way to go. Then again - she eyed the creatures chompers, still dripping drool onto the tile - she didn't think this thing could kill her in a painless way, even if it tried. She imagined back to the raptor scenes in 'Jurassic Park', where they used their claws, teeth, tails, and tore whatever they were eating to mere pieces. She knew this thing in front of her wasn't a dinosaur, but she knew that it was lethal. Taking a shaky breath, trying to appear calm on the outside, she very slowly lowered her arms and placed her palms flat on the floor on either side of her hips. The _alien_ gave a low hiss, but made no threatening movement towards her.

 _Will you understand if I say something to you?_ Layla wondered. She didn't think it was anything like a puppy that would respond to commands, or English language at all, if the brutal way it had murdered the man a few minutes ago had been any indication. She didn't know why she was comparing this thing before her to other animals/movie monsters. It was far more terrifying than her worst nightmares. "Um..." She had to clear her throat, her voice scratchy from neglect. She hoped it didn't think she was growling at it. "...Hi?"

The alien suddenly stiffened, lowering its head, that tail uncoiling form around its body in a mesmerizing fashion to raise threateningly behind its slim body. Her eyes widening, Layla pushed herself as far back against the wall as she possibly could. _Okay, no talking, no more talking, I'm sorry I'msorry pleasedon'tkillme_ \- Faster than she thought possible, the creature whipped around to face the door, that tail poised high in the air behind it. It's lanky body formed an attack posture, warning whatever it sensed that she didn't not to come any closer. Straining to understand, Layla tried to hear over the utter booming of her heart and blood pounding in her ears. Taking as quiet breaths as her racing pulse would allow, she still found she could not hear anything out of the ordinary. Turning her attention back to the midnight black creature before her, a mere few feet away from her, she realized that it almost looked like it was _protecting_ her. She had no idea why it would be, when just a moment ago it was drooling and hissing in her face.

Then, she heard footsteps.

They were heavy, fast, slowly getting louder, much like the other victim's footsteps before. She held her breath, wondering if she should scream to warn whomever it was that there was danger waiting for them in this room. At the moment, she was much more occupied with wondering why the monster in front of her was crouched between her and the door, seemingly guarding her from another one of her kind.

The footsteps ceased when they reached the door, and the low hiss that the alien had been making also came to a stop. For a moment, it was very quiet. _When had the alarm stopped going off?_ Layla hadn't even realized they'd been sitting in complete silence for quite some time. Had she blacked out during the encounter? Lost time? How long had she really been in this room with this thing for? She knew she had to find safety, and soon. She couldn't let herself delve back into crazyland during a time like this.

Before she saw anything else, she saw the tip of a gun barrel peaking around the door way, moving up and down like whomever was holding it was trying to psych themselves up for a battle. The alien saw it too, and let out a loud growl that had the hair on the back of her neck standing up. That tail swished in the air behind it, slowly and threateningly, prepared for what was to come. Before Layla also had time to prepare herself, a man stepped into the doorway, gun trained on the alien in front of her. It let out another growl, rising a bit from its crouch on the tile, as if it was trying to block her from view. Too late, the man had already seen her, and was now looking back and forth between the two like he had no idea where he was. He was one of the guards that tended to remain in the room during therapy sessions; she didn't know his name, but she recognized his face from the encounters. _Help_ , she pleaded silently in her mind, hoping her eyes would convey her message to him, _Help me_.

The very last thing she expected him to do was turn the gun to point it at her. The creature guarding her snarled, now standing completely on two legs, standing its ground between the two. Eyes wide, she pressed herself back against the wall once more, tears threatening to pour from her eyes. "No- _Wait_ -"

"Forgive me," the man whispered, just loud enough for her to hear, "They did this. _They did it_ , I had no idea this would happen, it was all just money..."

Layla wanted to demand he tell her what he was babbling about, wanted to run up and pound him in the face until he explained his words. She wouldn't have had time. He raised the gun, aiming at her head, the green laser sweeping over her left eye. She squeezed her eyes shut, a cry of fear escaping her. An ear piercing screech met her ears before a loud shot rang out. She waited to feel the pain, waited to feel whatever one feels when a bullet goes through their brains. She didn't feel anything. Not unless you counted _fear_ and _what the mother fuck is going on now_. A dull _thud_ sounded from across the room, and Layla opened her eyes just in time to see the guard fall to the ground, in the same fashion that the other man had. Much like before as well, the monster was in front of him, standing tall above its latest victim. Layla saw blood pooling rapidly underneath the guard, spreading beneath his body across the white tile. The bright color contrasted eerily with the static color of the room, and she knew it was a sight that would forever be stamped in her memory. Gulping, she very slowly glanced to the left of where her head rested against the wall, and saw a smoking hole in the wall, inches from her face. _Well, shit_.

A shaky sigh escaping her lips, she turned her head back towards her the monster, who was now looking at her once more. The monster who had _saved_ her from one of her own _kind_ , who had just tried to _murder_ her in cold blood.

All fear, worry, and filter gone for one quick moment, she managed to get out "What the _fuck_." before blackness swallowed her whole, and she passed out.

 **Hey guyssss, I've now at this point seen Covenant twice in two weeks... stay crazy people, stay crazy 3 Here's chapter 4! This one was kind of difficult just because I didn't really know how I was gonna write certain things, but you'll see what I mean as the story goes on! I hope you guys like it! Go see Covenant if you haven't already~**


	5. Ghost in the Mist

**"Everyday feels like it's so predictable**  
 **And I can't change it**  
 **I just want to break these habits**  
 **Take control of this confusion."**  
 **~ 'Ghost in the Mist' - Lacuna Coil**

 _Dark._ It was dark again.

This time upon waking, she wasn't sure if she just had her eyes closed or if it was actually dark in there. For a moment, she couldn't even remember where she was, or what she would find when she came to her senses. Then the events of the past few hours came to her. Taking a breath as slowly as she could under her newly remembered circumstances, she forced herself to open her eyes, bracing herself for whatever might be awaiting her. She felt like it was all she had done for the past lifetime: wake up, remember what had happened in a rush, and try not to dissolve into a fit of hysteria upon gathering the courage to open her eyes.

Much like Karen had done.

Layla wondered what had become of the other woman. If she could fine her, maybe she could get some answers. Staying alive long enough to do so, however, might be problematic. At least for now, it seemed like there was one less thing aboard this ship she had to worry about killing her. The alien creature back in the exam room had protected her from one of her own kind. That was like the _total_ opposite of what should have happened. Also, the fact that the guard hadn't looked surprised to see the creature; hadn't seemed as shocked as one _should_ be coming across such a thing. There was a lot Layla had to find out in a short amount of time. She would have to muster up every ounce of courage she had to do so.

And speaking of her... erm, _friend_? It was nowhere to be seen. Plus, she was no longer in the hospital room, or the hospital ward, for that matter. It probably would have been much easier to tell if it wasn't so dark, save for a few of the fluorescent lights overhead flickering like some Goddamn horror film. With those things running around though, it may as well have been bright and shiny and butterflies and unicorns, and she still would've felt like this was some freaky sci-fi monster movie. From what she could tell, she was in a hallway. And she was alone... for now.

That was another thing: she was sick of waking up and not knowing where the hell she was.

With a groan, she stretched her sore body with some effort. Her muscles were tired; _she_ was tired. She was also on the floor, and it wasn't very comfortable. God, how had she gotten here? Her life, right now, was a jumble of unanswered questions and exhaustion. And a tightness in her chest. After all that had happened, she deduced it was probably anxiety catching up to her. She was actually surprised she hadn't gone into a coma, at this point. One of shock from so many creepy crawlies up in here. Were these things _common_ in deep space? If she had known that, _man_ she never would've agreed to this. _Giant fucking spider crabs with tails,_ she thought, laying her head back on the hard floor. _Big black monsters with teeth the size of my toes, Jesus..._

A noise came from down the hall, and she froze. _Shit, not again._ Slowly and as quietly as she could, she curled herself into a ball, scooting back across the floor until she felt the wall behind her back. There was a file cabinet a little ways down the hall - if it had been closer, she would've pulled it up right in front of her and wedged it between herself and whatever was down the hall, if anything. Alas, she probably couldn't get to it before she was discovered.

Layla found herself afraid, not for the first time. _Human or monster_? At this point, she didn't know which she would rather face. It was a fellow human that had tried to shoot her in the head, for no apparent reason.

She gave a start as one of the lights down the hall abruptly fell from the ceiling; the whole panel shattered immediately upon impact with the floor. Though it had been flickering, it had most definitely been stuck pretty well in the ceiling... As she questioned whether or not something had pushed it out from the inside, her unspoken inquiry was answered when a large, dark creature dropped down from there. It was one of those things that had been in the exam room with her. She hoped to God it was the same one. She didn't know how many more there were, if there was even more than one, but this one hadn't seemed too intent on killing her.

The creature rose from the crouch it had landed in on the floor, that tail curling on the ground behind it. When it had reached the ground, it hadn't made a noise other than a slight _thud_ , and she had a feeling even that had been on purpose. Its lithe body barely appeared to move as it surveyed the scenery (or lack thereof) around itself, but she knew it was prepared for anything. Like chasing after someone. Maybe that was why it hadn't killed her in the first place; because she hadn't run? Most predators liked the thrill of the chase; enjoyed the game of having to catch their prize before it could be claimed as theirs.

If she was to run right now, would it chase her? She wasn't sure she wanted to find out.

Now it was coming towards her, its footsteps making _thump, thump, thump_ noises on the ground much like her heart in her chest, except a lot slower and steadier. When it reached the file cabinet a few feet away from her, it didn't go around it, rather climbed on top of it using no visible effort. From its perch up there, it confirmed her presence by tilting its head, looking straight at her. _How can you see me if you have no eyes?_ Layla knew that even though it may not have seen her at first, it had damn well known she was there. This creature seemed to run purely on instinct, like an animal stalking prey. From the way it watched her, it completely oozed calculation, like it was thinking about what its next move should be. The fact that it appeared to be _thinking_ at all, especially in this manner of human like consideration, did not sit well with her. Layla had finished high school, and she was not dumb. She knew that all things, alive and inanimate, had brainpower in some form or another. Living things thought to survive; judged which situations were dangerous and which were not. Inanimate things still had basic synaptic functions and molecules that told them to stay together/evolve with time. But this creature before her displayed an almost human form of intelligence; all this she gathered by watching it watch her. They sized each other up, and she was now positive this was her "pal" from the exam room.

After another moment of quiet, Layla's fear wavering in and out like static frequency, she swallowed and said "Well? Now what?" Despite her anxiety over the situation, she didn't want to sit in here all day and be studied like a morsel in a petri dish. She had shit to get done. At the sound of her voice, the creature allowed itself to relax ever so slightly, if you could its new posture "relaxed". The tail came around from behind it, slinking over the top of the cabinet to pool onto the floor in front of it.

Layla had no idea if it could even understand her. It was an extraterrestrial; talking to it may as well have been like a baby going _googoo gaagaa_ to an adult. She kind of didn't care, at this point though. She needed to get the words off her chest once and for all. _You know how to make God laugh?_ She could hear her mother's voice in her head. _Tell him your plans_. Maybe her attempt at interacting with this thing would humor it enough that it would leave her alone.

"Look," She struggled to come up with a term of endearment to call the creature. This was made more difficult by the fact that she didn't know its gender. _Dude? Man? Sir?_ Sir? _What the fuck Layla, you really have gone crazy. Yeah - look Sir, please let me figure out what is going on here, and don't kill me in the process. Good day to you._ She settled for not calling it anything, not wanting to further aggravate it. She sighed, "I don't know what's going on here. I don't know what you are, what those spider things are. And I really don't know why that guard back there tried to kill me. I'd like to find all of this out - I'm drowning here. I'm not going down without this knowledge." She swallowed again. She had no idea if this creature was catching onto any of her words, or if it was complete gibberish and nonsense. There was no way she could tell. "Do you understand what I'm telling you? I'm going to get out of here."

At this, it let out a low hiss. She kept her tone of voice even so she wouldn't be coming off as aggressive, so she knew it wasn't reacting to that. Which meant it may have possibly comprehended the words she had spoken. Not knowing if the creature would become hostile, she pushed herself back further against the wall, though she couldn't get any closer than she already was. She asked again, her voice steady even if her body couldn't back up the confidence. "You get what I'm saying? Understand me?"

There was a moment of pause where the two just looked at each other. Layla flinched when the monster dropped down from the file cabinet, more gracefully than a housecat, leaning forward on its haunches and landing on its hands on the ground. It's feet followed immediately and its tail slithered along behind it as it crawled over to her. She tried not to give off any vibes of discomfort or fear as it got closer, but it was difficult. The creature had no sense of personal space, coming right up to her to get in her face and smell her hair again. _Calm. Stay calm._ After a moment, the creature backed up a bit, tilting its head back to look up at the ceiling it had dropped down from. Then it looked back at her, expectantly. This whole time it had been emitting a low, quiet hiss, and she deduced it was something that was second nature to it. Much like breathing for humans. The monster didn't have a nose that she could see, but it was a pretty heavy mouth breather, so she gathered that was how it was able to smell.

It was odd being this close to death, quite literally feeling its breath on her.

"Are you trying to get me to come with you?" she asked it, afraid to speak too loudly. "Because if you're just planning on eating me, I'm not gonna waltz on into the oven with a tomato in my mouth."

The monster regarded her for a solid three seconds before it opened those large silver chompers to reveal... a smaller mouth inside of the first one. Layla's blood froze in her veins upon the sight, not sure if she was really seeing what she thought she was seeing. "Holy _fucker_ ," She about had a heart attack when the inner mouth _extended out towards her_ , slimy drool dripping off the thing and onto her hospital gown. "Oh my G-"

As soon as she had seen it, it was gone, sucked back into the creatures mouth. It continued to sit stock still, as thought waiting for some sort of confirmation. When she gave none, it wrapped long, spindly fingers around her ankles and began to drag her across the floor. Panic heightened once more, and Layla immediately squealed, " _Okay, okay! I'll go!"_ Not even really sure what exactly she was agreeing to, she just wanted it to stop touching her. Its grip was bony, tight, not at all human.

Satisfied, it stopped pulling on her legs and uncurled its hands from around her ankles. She scooted back a few feet, pulling her hospital gown back down so her underwear was not flashing the whole damn world. Lest it get impatient again, Layla pushed herself up off the ground and rose to her feet. _Guess I'm following you, bud_. "Okay then," She tried to express more bravado through her voice than she actually felt. She might be following this monster to her death... but then again, if it had wanted to kill her, it could've just punched that mouth-tongue through her head and been done with it. What was so important about her that it was keeping her alive? It had killed the only other people they'd come across without mercy. Why not her? Her curiosity was on the same level as her fear. She had a lot to figure out. In some weird way, she wondered if this creature could help her.

Hoping that this would not end in her bloody death, and seeing that she had no other choice, she squared her shoulders and made herself look at the creatures black, reflective carapace. "Where to now?"

 **Hey y'alll here's chapter 5, I just recently picked out the chapter titles/songs for the next few chapters so I have some organization in my life XD Seriously I have an entire playlist dedicated to Alien/Predator/AVP, so if anyone's interested I can provide a list on here 3 I hope you guys enjoy! Startin' dem adventures**


	6. Live Again

**"The days to come will spit at you**  
 **Your hopes and dreams will fit into**  
 **A box that's ripped and split in two**  
 **Life can't be fixed with sticks and glue**  
 **But try and hold it together**  
 **One day we'll control the weather."**  
 **~"Live Again" - From Ashes to New**

Layla followed her unusual companion down yet another dimly lit vent. The more she saw of this place (through holes and slots in the metal, of course), the more this place really did look like some sort of horror show. Flickering lights, shadowy hallways - like, seriously, what the _fuck?_ Not to mention the creature she was trailing behind like a lost puppy... That was the stuff nightmares were made of. She'd had plenty of nightmares in her life, but none like _this._

After she'd reluctantly agreed to follow the creature (aware that even if she hadn't agreed she would've been _dragged_ , as was displayed to her before), she realized that she most definitely would have to get back into doing cardio regularly if this was going to happen often. The first place they'd gone was up. Into the _vents._ When the creature had launched itself back up into the black hold it had dropped down from, Layla had wondered for a second if it had been joking about her following along. Could these things joke? _Because,_ she thought, _you've damn well gotta be kidding me if you think I'm going up there._ After a moment of no movement on her part, the creature's head peeked out from the hole in the ceiling upside down, looking at her like _Well, ya comin'?_ .

"Um," She pointedly looked down at the floor, and then back up at the ceiling overhead. It wasn't a short distance, and she herself was a short distance. Barely 5'3, she never was the basketball playing type.

She stepped a bit closer to the hole so she was almost underneath it. "I don't know if you've noticed, buddy, but uh, I can't do what you just did," She shook her head, making sure not to stand directly under the waterfall of saliva dripping from its jaws. _Ugh._ "And also, I'm not a big fan of the da-" The monster lurched at her suddenly, and before she could even flinch back those bony fingers were wrapped around the tops of her arms. With one god yank, one spindly arm dropping to wrap around her waist for better leverage, she was hauled up into the black. She let out a scream that echoed through the empty room, and again in the recesses of the vents as she was forcefully taken up there. " _Oh_ -" She was set down none too gently on the cold surface of the inside of the vent, which creaked immediately from the weight. Inches from the opening, those same bony arms dragged her a bit further down into the dark. "Okay, I do _not_ feel safe," she commented, her voice high with fear. The absurdity of the entire situation hit her then; she felt like she was on a high that was causing her to hallucinate. Minus the high part. Plus a warm ache near her trachea, like she had heartburn. _Probably stress_ , she thought. This wasn't exactly a relaxing situation.

The thing let her go, and while she couldn't see it, she was aware that it was on top of her. She felt it hovering over her, heard the drool splashing on the surface of the vent next to her head. She wasn't sure how long she could make it before she puked; she couldn't handle saliva, it freaked her out. She hadn't even done that when she'd been on heroin, no matter how out of sorts she'd been. The creature's arm unwound from her waist, and the tail dragged across her body as it crawled over her head so it was no longer on her. Layla let out a breath of relief - she didn't think she'd ever get used to it being so close to her, even if it didn't seem like it wanted to eat her at the moment. Apparently their kind didn't understand a thing called personal space at all. Layla did; she appreciated the personal space bubble, and was not okay with hers being invaded. In order to survive this though, she thought, there might have to be some adjustments to her attitude about the whole thing.

She rolled over onto her stomach, finding the inside space surprisingly roomie. Not that she could see two feet in front of her but she felt around with her hands and was able to picture it. Reaching a hand up, she found that it was also roomie up top as well. Not quite enough to stand, but she'd be able to crawl in the classiest way possible, and not have to wiggle through tight spaces like a worm. _Aye carumba._

"Next time, warn me," she'd grumbled to the thing, wherever it was. She'd ended up following it through the vents for a couple of minutes before they'd come to a stop where they were now. Not that she could see where that was. There were tiny spaces in the metal where light escaped, plus the occasional ventilation grill, but not enough to be able to make out anything clearly inside the space. Well, not for her anyways. Her companion wasn't appearing to have any problems in that department. In any department, actually.

Layla jumped in surprise when the creature punched out one of the panels, and it made a clang noise that resounded through the area. So much for being quiet. The creature dropped down swiftly through the opening, landing without so much as a sound, that tail rising behind the crouched monster like it was a marionette on a string. She had a feeling she would come to recognize that as a common display; it made the monster appear lethal and threatening. Not that the black spiked tail and huge teeth didn't automatically scream _dangerous_. But it definitely made quite the show for any other poor sap that overlooked the obvious.

Layla found herself unable to look away in spite of the nightmare inducing antics of the creature. It was the farthest thing from human she'd ever seen; built completely for the purpose of killing, surviving. It moved with such grace, even when doing something as simple as rising and turning its head to survey the room it had landed in. More graceful than a dancer; more fluid than a swimmer. _How,_ she wondered, _was something like this created?_ How did all of these predatory traits even combine without overlapping and becoming useless and ridiculous? Her mind briefly flickered over two of these creatures copulating, and red faced, she immediately squashed the thought where it began. _No_ , she did not want to think about that.

She flinched once again with a yelp when the creature launched itself back up at the hole she was peeking out of, it's clawed fingers latching onto two sides of the opening before it let itself hang there. Hissing like an idling engine (or like a rattlesnake waiting to strike), it reached one of those long, thin arms up to grab at her. As much as she wanted to crawl back out of its reach, she knew it would eventually grab a hold of her once again. The thought of this thing chasing her through the dark vents and cramped spacing was so horrifying it stomped on all thoughts of resisting. Definitely something she didn't want to go through. She let it get a hold of her, wincing at the tight, inhuman grip. "Shit," she muttered as she was yanked towards the opening and pulled out more quickly than a dick that didn't want to father children. She clutched onto the monster like a lifeline as they dangled from the ceiling, not even caring that her companion could kill her a lot quicker than the fall could. Her fear of heights outweighed just about anything else; including her fear of having her face eaten off by two sets of sharp chompers. She squeezed her eyes shut as they dropped to the floor, clenching her teeth as well during the freefall. It wasn't a long drop, but she still didn't care to see everything blur around her. She only opened her eyes when her feet were firmly planted on the ground, having let go of the creature. She took a massive step back from it as it towered over her. Their little ride down resulted in her hair being damp from that steady stream of drool dripping from its mouth.

"Ugh," She retched, just barely holding the bile back, " _Gross."_ She'd be sure to never do that again. _Nasty motherfucker._

Said 'nasty motherfucker' was suddenly right in front of her, towering over her short frame, drool splashing at her feet. Its teeth were bared like usual, and it was way too close for comfort. A spark of anger lit in the pit of her stomach, " _Will you quit fucking crowding me_?" she grumbled. In response, the monster tilted that huge, elongated head, lips shrinking back to reveal its shiny, silver teeth even more. The thing was even creepier when it stood upright, like some morbid mockery of humanity. She was so focused on its face right above hers that she hadn't even noticed its tail... Until she felt a pressure between her legs.

Eyes blown wide, Layla inhaled sharply, both in surprise and in reaction to the sensation. "Excuse me," Her voice severely lacked the venom she wanted to pour into it, but that could've been because this was the very last thing she'd expected the creature in front of her to do. At the same time, her chest tightened exponentially, and she felt that same ache near her trachea magnify. It was like a burning sensation in the pit of her chest, and if she wasn't so God damn worried that this monster was gonna jab her up the ass with that tail, she would've doubled over to try and alleviate some of the pain. Was she having a heart attack? Wouldn't she feel that more towards her left side rather than right in the middle of her rib cage? At this exact moment though, she deduced that she really couldn't be surprised by anything anymore.

The monster was emitting its usual hiss, drool coating her shoulder and soaking the short sleeve of her hospital gown. She was too confused at the moment to react how she normally would've to that though, completely rooted to the spot. _What the_ hell _are you doing_? It stepped closer around to her side, very slowly, making her feel like she was in a trance. Each step it took was methodical as it moved around behind her, and when it was out of sight she felt her panic heighten, the burning in her chest growing hotter with each breath. The creature took great care to stay in contact with her, it's body brushing against hers the whole time like some huge feline, the end of that tail winding down around her left leg until the tip of it reached her ankle. Everything seemed to be in slow motion, but she knew it was just the monster's weird way of moving; the utter grace of a hunter. Something not even the most disciplined human could ever achieve.

Layla used her own self discipline to make sure she didn't jump or flinch when she felt the creature's clawed fingers close over her shoulders. This was not the same death grip it had used on her the past couple of times it had touched her though; when it had been dragging her where it wanted to go. This was almost a caress; while not entirely gentle, it had a stark sensuality to it that was undeniable.

If she hadn't known any better, it almost seemed like it was trying to comfort her, in a strange way.

Maybe she didn't know any better.

The monster used it's leverage on her shoulders to press it's entire front up against her back, no space left between either body. There was no hope for her hospital gown; the damn thing was practically soaked through entirely on her upper body. Thank God she had a bra on. No sooner had she thought that than the thing slid its right hand slowly across her chest, its palm resting right over the point where the burning sensation was strongest. All at once the pressure in her chest increased once again, seemingly pushing against its palm, while the barbed tail between her legs increased its own insistent, rhythmic pressure, as though trying to distract her from whatever else she was feeling.

She couldn't form a coherent thought, no matter how hard she was trying, and the more she strained to think the more she was lost in what was happening to her.

Whatever was going on in her chest cavity was having a severe reaction to this creature being as close as it was to her. This led her to believe that something was very, very off. Her one thought that she managed to form amidst the chaos was that maybe, just maybe, it wasn't stress that was causing the burning. But what else could it have been?

The creature let out a... _purr_? From behind her; that's exactly what it sounded like, except more alien. At the same time, she felt something hard prod her backside. Eyes opening so wide she thought they would fall out and roll across the floor, one clear thought rang out in her head: _it_ was a _he_.

Then everything stopped.

The alien released her, and the pressure in her chest jolted to a stop almost immediately. She nearly fell to her knees; her entire body was tingling all over from fear and stimulation. She managed to turn to face the creature; _him_ , behind her, and breathe out, "What the _fuck_ was _that_ all about?" Why had he touched her like that? What was he doing that was causing her chest to constrict in such an abnormal way? What was wrong with _her_?

As she had expected, he didn't answer. He did, however, drop into a crouch so he wasn't towering over her. His teeth were parted slightly, and he appeared to be scenting the air, his head turning this way and that very slowly.

"I'm gonna need some answers soon, buddy," She got her voice back then, able to stand fully upright. She still kept one of her own hands over that point on her chest where all the pressure had built up. "Like, real soon. No more of that shit, you hear me?" If he did hear her, he didn't acknowledge her words. Or he didn't understand them; there was really no way to tell. Layla had a feeling he understood more than he let on, just chose not to pay attention to what she said. _Asshole_.

The alien crawled back over to the spot they had both landed on the ground, and then proceeded to launch himself back up into the vents. When his body had disappeared completely from view, two bony, sinewy black arms poked out of the opening, and that tail slid down as well, waving almost tauntingly. "God dammit, not this again," Layla grumbled. Letting out a breath, more like an exasperated sigh, she walked with resolve back underneath the opening as well. As she raised her arms for the thing to hoist her up once again, to go traipsing back through the damn vents, she made sure to clench her thighs together as much as she could. Her panties were soaking wet. _Great_.

 **Eyyyy back once again! I had a lot of fun writing this chapter... cuz i'm a sicko. I hope all you other sickos out there enjoy this as much as I do :3 heeheeee**


	7. Heaven's a Lie

**"Oh no,**  
 **here it is again**  
 **I need to know**  
 **when I will fall in decay..."**  
 **~ "Heaven's a Lie" - Lacuna Coil**

After crawling around in the vents some more (a few more than she wanted to be in, which was _none_ ), the unusual duo had come to yet another stop. This one was in the form of an abrupt drop-off at the end of their path in the vents. Layla was glad for the slots in the panel beneath her that appeared right before the drop-off, because they let in just enough light to show that there was a black hole of descent right in front of them. Her lithe, inhuman companion probably had noticed it long before they'd reached it; she assumed it could see where they were going. She liked to think that they weren't just traveling blindly through the dark - she shuddered at the thought. If she'd been by herself, she could have been blown out out of an airlock by now. That was the horror of being out in deep space; one wrong door and suddenly the breath is stolen from your lungs and you're sucked out into a solar system somewhere. _I'd like a planet named after me, but I don't wanna be no planet._

Focusing back on the moment, she leaned forward as much as she could without touching her companion; _him_ , as she'd learned. "So, what now?" She kept her voice quiet, but the whisper still echoed through the vents. She wondered if there was anyone around to hear it, or if she was all that was left. Jesus, what would become of her then?  
Instead of waiting for her to comprehend its intentions, like usual, the alien just went ahead and did what he wanted. All she saw was a glint of silver as his sharp-tipped tail disappeared over the edge of the hole.

"Are you fucking kidding me?" Maybe if she'd still been on heroin, that might've seemed like a good idea, but now that she was clean, all that went through her head was _Oh HELL no_. This was like two of her worst fears combined: heights and the dark.

Determined to not be manhandled this time, she crawled towards the black hole looming before her. _God, what am I doing?_ Upon getting closer, she noted that there was a ladder. _Oh thank you Lord._ That made it a little better; at least she wouldn't be freefalling to God only knew where.

She briefly wondered if the creature was waiting for her down below, then decided she didn't really care as she gripped onto the handles of the ladder. Saying goodbye to what little light there was, she began her descent down into the black. Panic set in as she could no longer see the steps of the ladder, nor would she have been able to see her hand in front of her face. _I am a grown woman, the dark is not going to get me, I am fine._

However, knowing that the dark housed creatures like the one she was following... _That_ didn't comfort her.

Layla gave a start when one of her bare feet touched the cool bottom of the vent, and slowly let go of the ladder to kneel onto the surface. From feeling her way down, she could tell there was another vent she would have to be going through. This one was pitch black, and she couldn't see a thing. _Deep breath, deep breath._

From down the vent, she heard that hissing noise that sent a chill up her spine. She wasn't quite sure why, but this time it sent her into a state of panic that had her scrambling back up the ladder like a whirling dervish.

Another hiss immediately followed her reaction, this one way more hostile than it had been before. She forced herself to climb back down onto the cold surface, swallowing thickly. She doubted she would've made it that far; not that she really wanted to run to begin with. She knew she was probably safer with this creature than she was anywhere else at the moment. For now it seemed intent on protecting her, for whatever reason. Plus, that thought of being chased through the vents by this thing... A creature much more lithe and built for speed than she was. As far ahead as it was from her right now, no doubt, it could shoot back through the tunnel and be in front of her face before she even knew it.

 _He_ , she kept having to remind herself.

For now, she would play along, ensure her survival. If he was intent on not killing her, then that was fine by her.

The question though, was _why?_ What was so important about her that this thing felt the need to protect her? Her mind flitted back to what had happened just before they'd come back up into the vents, and she wondered yet again what the hell that had been all about. _Maybe he thinks I'm cute...?_

He was close to her now; she could feel his breath as he came near. _Please don't drag me down the vent, please for the love of God._ Been there, done that to the _max_. A little while ago she'd apparently made a wrong turn somewhere back in the tunnels, and the creature had taken it upon himself to grab her by the ankles and take off in the right direction with her in tow. And now she'd probably have nightmares. She did not want to relive it.

"I hope you know," she murmured in the darkness, towards the direction in which she thought the creature was, "that I can't see you, _or_ your pissed off snarling face." A growl came from right in front of her, and she had the biggest urge to growl right back. Or run away. "And that means I don't see which direction your slimy ass is crawling in."

There was no answer from her companion, not that she'd expected one. She could still hear the _drip, drip_ of his gross drool splattering on the vent floor in front of her; that was the only indication that he was still there.

All of a sudden, there came a draft from her left, as well as a distant crash. _What was that?_ Though Layla couldn't even see her hand in front of her face, she whipped her head to the left out of reflex. Where did that come from?

"Any idea what that was?" she asked the alien, who was momentarily forgiven. Once again, she knew she would get no answer, and she didn't receive one. Against her better judgement, she began crawling in the direction of the draft. Her friend didn't attempt to stop her though; as far as she could tell, he hadn't moved from his spot. It didn't matter, she was going to find the source one way or another. The more she went down the newfound pathway, the more she could make out a faint light coming from the tunnel ahead. The sight made her crawl a little faster, and upon getting closer she saw that the light was coming through a small ventilation shaft in one of the metal panels.

"Hey," she whisper-shouted to her comrade, "This looks promisi-" The metal panel that she was balanced on gave way beneath her weight, and she let out a scream as the panel plunged to the floor below with her on top of it. She and the object hit the floor with a crash, much like the one she'd heard moments ago. The impact rattled her body as she landed without grace in a pile on her stomach, taking her breath away instantly.

A startled cry from in front of her caused her to lift her head, and she realized she was not the only person in this room. There was a _man_ standing a few feet away with a look of surprise on his face, staring at the woman who'd just fallen from the sky into what appeared to be an office - possibly _his_ office.

It took a moment for her to recognize his face as that of the psychologist that sat in on their stupid group sessions they had been forced to do. He looked very frazzled, like he'd been hurrying to do something. She noted a briefcase in one of his hands as she lay there, gasping for breath. He was disheveled and exhausted, a crazed look haunting his panic stricken face. Making no move towards her, he picked the briefcase up in both hands, holding it in front of his chest as if it was a shield.

Layla continued to struggle sucking in each breath - she couldn't wait until she got her voice back so she could tell this asshole what she _really_ thought of their group sessions, ream him a new one. Another _thud_ shook the floor around them, and then something was on her. Not touching her, but hovering over her like a crouched tiger protecting its babies. She knew exactly what - _who_ it was, and by the look on the doctor's pale face, he knew what it meant for him.

" _No_ ," he moaned, raising the briefcase defensively. Layla thought with a streak of pride that he didn't look so high and mighty now. Now he was the one who was afraid and didn't know what to do.

The creature above her hissed with hostility, and she could feel the drool pouring from its mouth splashing on the floor next to her face. She would have voiced her disgust, but she was so interested to see how this progressed that she didn't date make a sound - other than continuing to gasp for breath.

It was only a matter of time before the monster she was with decided to make a meal out of this guy so she knew she had to act soon. Drawing in a deep, raspy breath, her abdomen killing her, she addressed the man, "I need you to tell me-" _Cough_ "-what the _hell_ is going on around here." When at first he didn't reply, just stared fearfully at the duo, the alien creature growled and began to advance on him.

" _Nonono, please_ ," The man backed up as far as he could until his back hit the wall, "Please don't-" He was now blubbering and crying, which Layla had never imagined the collected, bordering on cold psychiatrist that engaged them during bullshit sessions. _Okay, enough fun_.

"Hey," Layla reached out and grabbed the back of the creature's right thigh, which felt like no other thigh she'd ever touched in her life. The tail was draped over her back casually, but she guessed this was also a latent threatening gesture. The weight of it felt very possessive. A clench in her chest had her gripping his leg tighter. "Hold on, I need to talk to him," Reluctantly, her companion backed off, backing up until he was hovering over top of her once again. She started wiggling out from under his protecting body, not wanting to sit up and have her back touch him. He reached down and hooked his bony fingers under her armpits to hoist her up off the floor. She was set on her knees and pushed herself up with a hand against her chest; her own hand. She felt weird - that heartburn feeling was back, along with a throbbing sensation that was not her heartbeat.

 _Oh, God_. It felt like a really bad case of indigestion, but in her _chest. What the hell?_ She made herself walk towards the guy across the floor, coming to a stop right in front of him. There was a desk right next to her on her right, and she couldn't help but lean on it. She felt like she was going to collapse, like she should lay down before she fell over. Hand clenched on the side of the desk, knuckles white, she looked at the doctor and swallowed, "As you can see, I'm really not in the mood to play games with you." The doctor lowered his briefcase slightly, eyeing back and forth between the duo, his expression still scared. Layla smacked her hand on the desk, and he jumped at the noise, head turning to look at her with wild eyes. " _Hey_ man, I'm not fuckin' around - you don't even wanna know how weird today has been, trust me. I just need you to please talk to me, and tell me what the fuck is going on up in here!"

The man blinked, staring at her momentarily before his face crumpled and tears started pouring from his eyes. _Oh, for the love of-_ "It wasn't supposed to be like this," he warbled, a choked noise escaping his throat.

Now it was Layla's turn to blink at him; she had no idea of what the hell he could possibly be referring to. "What wasn't supposed to be like _what_ now?"

The guy - she wished she could remember his name, but he didn't have his badge on him to be able to tell - put a hand over his face and wiped at his cheeks. "This whole thing - everything that's happened - it was supposed to be contained. Not like _this_..." He let out a sob. She still didn't feel sorry for him; whatever he was referring to, she knew he'd had some hand in, and that was the reason for his guilt.

"Okay, bro," Her anger was going from zero to one hundred fast. "I'm gonna need you to be clearer with me - like, _crystal_ clear. I've gotta know what I've gotten myself into."  
He looked at her for the first time, and there was pity in his gaze. "I am very sorry - this is not going to be a pleasant story. I'm afraid you've been... _impregnated."_

Her mind cut out for a moment, like she'd lost her frequency connection. _I've been what?!_

"So, I'm _pregnant?_ With _what?"_ She was almost afraid to ask. She wouldn't have inquired, but there was no way that whatever species her friend was wasn't involved somehow. _Was she pregnant with his alien baby? Fuck?!_

She could hear the man talking, but couldn't make out clear words - there was a rushing noise in her ears that was clouding everything else. Her face was getting really hot. She knew she was going to pass out - she'd only ever done so three times, but she'd never forgotten how it felt. _Do not faint. Do. Not._

The only words she was able to make out through the fog were _impregnated, foreign species, human host,_ and _experiment_.

That was all she needed to hear before she was out - she just hoped she didn't smack her head on that fucking table on her way down.


	8. Hunger

**"Hunger - save me**

 **One world depending on me**

 **I have the force in me**

 **The truth will be revealed**

 **Higher - faster**

 **I am the fuel to set you free**

 **I am your destiny."**

 **~ 'Hunger' - Amaranthe**

Thump. Thump. Thump. Thump.

So fast fast faster. Will they run? Can they run? Hide? Hide? No. They won't.

Not fast enough.

Hungry. Hunger. Burning deep, burning hot. Heat. Seeking the heat. Uncovering it. Tearing it apart. Consuming it. Consume. Life. Devour it.

Thumpthumpthumpthumpthumpthumpthump

Faster. Hungry. Out. Get out. Let it out. Feed it. Feed it. Feed the heat. Let it thrive. Survive. Survive.

 **xXx**

Layla opened her eyes, looking up at the bright lights coming from the ceiling. As soon as everything that had happened previously came flooding back to her, she gave a sigh. I've passed out more in the past twenty four fucking hours than I ever have in my entire life. Her head pounded - her skull felt like it had been beaten with a baseball bat a few times. And her chest still ached.

Then, she remembered.

Oh fucking fuck.

She shot up off the floor (once again!), clutching at her clothed chest with both hands. No. No. NO. The floor was cold against her nearly bare ass cheeks, as the gown didn't cover her backside or even reach her thighs as she sat on the floor holding her chest. I am not pregnant with an alien baby, please Christ...

If someone had told her six months ago that she would have an alien inside of her, she would've thought she was still high.

Now she was clean, but worried about her sanity. As well as her physical health. How good can it be for the body to give birth to a fucking extraterrestrial?!

Ask the doctor. Ask the doctor. Didn't matter that he was a psychiatrist; he was still a doctor and he still had a hand in all of this. He was the best option she had for answers right now.

Curling her legs underneath her to help rise her up off the floor a little, Layla looked around the room for the first time since she'd woken up. She was alone. Not even the drooly fuck face who'd been following her around... Rather, who she'd been following around. That sonofabitch was always leaving her to wake up alone in a strange place.

Typical baby daddy.

The thought came unwarranted and unexpected, and she actually busted out into laughter when she'd realized exactly what words had crossed her mind.

Oh hell no, I am not going there! What the hell, Layla?!

In her mind, even before she'd been a druggie, thoughts tended to come randomly and with a vengeance - especially those that could be taken offensively by anyone else that heard them. They often came in the most inappropriate of times, as well, much like in this instance. She liked to blame it on her quick wit, but really, she guessed part of the perversion was a side-effect of being a crack ho.

Layla also noted the utter irony of the situation, here on the cold floor in a thin hospital gown, and that made her laugh even harder. The only thing she'd ever been a ho for was heroin, and even then she hadn't been a ho ho; she had for the drugs, but not for the people selling the drugs. That was just asking for trouble. When it came to heroin, Layla hadn't cared where it came from, how good it was, or how she would have to get it into her system - she just wanted it. She needed it. When it came to sex, she was a little more picky. In all her twenty five years, she'd only had sex once and it had been awful. A friend of hers had sold her some drugs and she'd been feeling frisky... Note to self: never again.

So that was why it was so funny and so ironic that she was now, more or less, pregnant. For someone who was so picky with who she gave it up to, she was now going to be a mother... in a way.

Just when I thought my life couldn't get any weirder.

When she had finished cackling, wiping the tears from her tired eyes, she rose up off the floor, one hand over the burning in her chest. She looked around the room - she was still in the psychiatrists office where she'd been, although now she was down a fellow human and an alien. She was definitely alone in here, and it was eerily quiet. With a tired sigh, she padded over behind the doctor's desk and dropped down into his comfy, leather rolling chair. Man, this thing was more comfortable than her bed. Lifestyles of the rich and shameless.

Settling her back against the leather cushion behind her, she pulled down the front of her hospital gown to see the condition of her chest. Surprisingly, there was nothing. No visible evidence of what was going on inside her body. Layla was very much aware that normal human pregnancy typically started in the womb, but since this was not a normal human pregnancy, and the burning was in her chest... She was just going to assume that that was where the, erm, 'baby' was. Oh, boy. She pulled down the front of her sports bra also, but still didn't see anything that would lead one to believe there was something going on between her ribs.

By now, she also realized that the spider thing that had jumped on her face - that she had also seen on the other patient's face - was the cause of her current status. That had to be it. It would be too weird of a coincidence. Plus, she had woken up on the medical table and her throat had been wicked sore, like something had been jammed down it...

Ugh. She did not want to think about that. Disgusting.

She pulled her bra down further, beneath her breasts, still looking for any tell-tale sign of her, ahem, pregnancy. Was that even the correct term in this situation? She honestly didn't have a clue; she wasn't up on her interspecies-mouth-rape-parasitic-impregnation terminology. That was the most eloquent way she could think of to put things. This was the most fucked up situation she'd ever been in. Even more fucked up than the time she'd agreed to sleep with her twenty-plus-something year older than her cousin who'd been dealing heroin. Low, she knew. Disgusting, she knew. She had never slept with him, in the end; she'd never intended to. She ceased all means of contact after he gave her the drugs and had not seen him since. That had been a fucked up situation. This was a whole new world of fucked up - literally!

What the hell would the people back on Earth think if they knew? She'd probably get thrown into serious psychiatric care for the rest of her days - that tended to be the outcome for anyone who showed up anywhere screaming about aliens. That's what happened in the movies she'd seen, at least. Safe to say that would be the outcome that was most likely. They'd definitely believe her, though, when she gave birth to... What? The spider thing that had jumped on her face didn't look anything like her tall, skinny 'friend' she'd been following. So what, exactly, would she be giving birth to? Would she even survive this birth? If the thing was in her chest instead of her womb, how would she be giving birth to it? Cold fear thudded through her veins; her breath quickened against her control. Would it... hurt?

Layla closed her eyes and leaned her head back against the comfy cushions of the chair, attempting to slow her breath through her nose. Calm down. Calm down. You can't think when you're freaking out, just breathe slow...

It wasn't easy to think about calming things right now - not when this was the dream she was living that she couldn't seen to wake up from. It was stupid, she thought, but she began thinking about her mermaids. That helped her focus a bit more on the task at hand - she could get scales tattooed the hell up both legs if she got out of here alive. That should be her incentive, she realized. You make yourself push through, and you can get as many mermaids as you want plastered all over your body. You get out of here, and you get to see the ocean again. If she got out of here alive, she vowed she was going to find a place to live by the water. At this point, she didn't care if she lived in a cardboard box on the beach - she was going to be by the water. That would be the reward for her perseverance.

After a long moment of breathing and thinking, she came up with a clear game plan. First, she needed to figure out where the doctor was. She had a lot of questions for him that had gone unanswered - things she would need to know if she was going to survive. Second, she needed to get this 'baby' out of her. That was the first major outcome that needed to happen - she was going to do her best to try and save the people on board with her, but she couldn't do that if she was inhibited like this. If she was a time bomb that could go at any second... She took another deep breath, trying to calm her racing heart. When she felt anxious, it seemed to make the burning in her chest worse. Focus, Layla. Third, she had to find out how to save anyone she could and get them the hell out of this flying ship of death. It may not have been a perfect plan, but she would have to work out details as she went along. At least it was something.

And, she thought, tacking it onto her plan, she wanted to find her 'friend' and see if he would be of anymore help to her. She wondered where he was now. Was he after the doctor? Had he - oh, shit. Had he made a meal out of the guy?! She envisioned the inky black body streaking down a hall behind the terrified doctor, hunting him down like a ghost breathing on his heels. Once this whole thing was over, Layla didn't care if the doctor decided to become a drag queen and dance to "Born This Way" at a shady bar every week night for the remainder of his days. Right now, she just needed him to explain more about the situation to her - and tell her how the hell to get rid of her child. Alien or not, Layla wondered if this kid would share her sass. Probably gon' be the sassiest extraterrestrial the entire outer space has ever known.

"Well," Layla said out loud to herself, just so she could hear something other than the impending silence in the room, "Not gonna get anywhere by sitting here. Even if this chair is damn comfy." For a moment, she actually debated dragging the chair along with her on her journey outside the safety of the office. Then she thought about backtracking specifically to this office when she was ready to catch some shut eye. Preferably after she got this thing out of her. She didn't want to accidentally sleep for sixteen hours and then wake up and realize that she was dead.

She made herself get up out of the office chair, standing unsteadily on her two bare feet she still felt pretty lightheaded - her brain felt like it was submerged in oil. She tried to shake off the discomfort - there would be no time for that passing out business again. After she got this alien baby out of her, she could pass out all she wanted. Well, not really. Once she made it back to Earth she could. She could sleep for a week straight and it wouldn't matter. As long as she made it out of here alive.

Padding quietly towards the door that would lead into another dark, creepy hallway, Layla reached her arms high above her head to try to stretch the muscles in her back and front. The hospital gown she wore barely covered her butt when she did this. Those creepy ass doctors wanted to see all the druggies bits and it was totally not cool. She'd have to remember to write a strongly worded letter to the government when she got back home. She'd also have to remind them that human experimentation was a dick move.

Reaching out towards the door handle, she took a deep breath to prepare herself for whatever was out there waiting for her. Hand closing around the cool metal, she tried to turn the handle, but it was locked. She jiggled it again, not convinced, but it became pretty apparent that she was locked in after a moment of attempting to force the door open. She sighed angrily through her nose. What the hell kind of an office locked from the inside?

"Balls on a-" Layla gave a good yank on the handle, and it didn't budge, "-fucking stick." She took a step back to study the frame. If it was a door that opened from the outside, she'd have tried to throw herself against it, force it open. Unfortunately, it would open in towards the office, so trying to push a pull door would only be in vain. "Dammit." Muttering about how she couldn't believe this, Layla hobbled back over to the comfy chair and plopped back down into it. What was she supposed to do now? There was no telling how long it would take for anyone to find her - if anyone else was still alive. She wondered if her tall, dark and drooly friend had decided to lock her in here until she gave birth to whatever was growing inside her ribcage. If he did, she was gonna be pissed beyond belief.

She was in the chair for a total of about thirty two seconds when she heard a noise at the door. It made the hair on the back of her neck raise, the noise. It was like something smooth was being dragged up the door - like a big snake was slithering slowly up the outside of the flat surface. It made Layla glad the door and office didn't have windows; she didn't want to know what it was. She had a feeling she already knew. If it wasn't the big guy she'd been with, she knew she was probably toast. She glanced up quick to the ceiling. That open vent wasn't really anywhere within her reach - even if she were to stand on the desk and jump, she probably wouldn't get up there. Even if she was able to grab a hold of the edges of the opening, she probably still couldn't swing herself up there. Too many damn brownies at dinnertime.

A loud clank came from the door, and a shiver went down her spine as the door slowly swung open, the once locked door handle now limp and falling uselessly to the floor with a ping. A tall, dark figure with a long head and spiny tail stood on the other side, drool dripping from silver teeth onto the floor. It was her guy, she was certain. For a moment, that was the only noise. Then, "Did you lock me in here on purpose?"

The creature cocked it's - his - head to one side at her accusation, sensing the hostility in her tone. He probably didn't like being scolded. Tough. "Was I seriously just put in time out?" She put her hands on her hips, glaring at the monster before her. She didn't know why she was talking to him like he was going to answer. Like he could actually understand every little thing she was saying. "Fuck you, I need to get out of here." Without any consideration for any danger she might be in, she stomped over to the blocked doorway, fully prepared to push him out of the way to get through.

She never got the chance.

Like a freight train coming at her, a force beyond anything she'd ever known hit her straight in the chest and shoulders, knocking her on her ass quicker than she thought could be possible.

Landing flat on her back, wind knocked out of her once again so she couldn't even scream, Layla thought back to something she had been warned about many times when she was younger. Strange that she would think about it now, when this creature with huge teeth and a razor tipped tail was looming over her like the grim reaper, but maybe it wasn't so strange at all. People had told her many, many times growing up; whether she was in the principals office after a fight, or in a holding cell at the local police department. The same words she'd been told time and time again: Your mouth is going to get you in a lot of trouble, someday.

Back then, she hadn't known quite how much. But here, now, with this creature crouched above her, tail slithering up the inside of her leg... She knew she was in deep trouble.

 **Hey all! Here's my next installment, been a long time coming I know XD but it's finally here so Yayyy! I'm having a not-so-great day today, trying not to let mean people but me but sometimes they just get to ya, unfortunately :'( so updating is helpful! I hope everyone enjoys, thank you for joining me on this crazy ride 3**


	9. Eyes Closed

**"Now if I keep my eyes closed he looks just like you**

 **But he'll never stay, they never do**

 **Now if I keep my eyes closed he feels just like you**

 **But you've been replaced**

 **I'm face to face with someone new..."**

 **~ 'Eyes Closed' - Halsey**

 **XXXXXXX**

"Get the _fuck_ off of me, _freako!"_

Wouldn't that have been hilarious if these were her last words? If your last words were actually engraved on your headstone, and that was what was written on hers? _We gather here today to celebrate the life of Layla Susannah Thomas, her last living words being 'Get the fuck off of me, freako'. She had a way with words._ And her parents would be there, and her mom would be crying and all _I taught her better than to use such language!,_ and her dad would be like _Damn I shoulda just let her be a druggie!_ The gravesite would have to be marked by the stone, and there would be no body, because there would probably be nothing left of it after this guy was done with her. The ship was on a charted course to reach the planet they'd be inhabiting, so even if there was no one remaining alive on the ship, it would continue sailing until it reached its destination. By then, probably everybody on it would be dead, and if the aliens, creatures, whatever they were, got loose on the planet where they were building the housing units... That would not be good for the people that currently resided there. And then everyone would be dead together, and no one would know what became of them. All because Layla had to mouth off to a monster that may or may not have already been contemplating eating her face off. Honestly, story of her life. She could always make an already shitty situation worse by opening her trap.

Anyways, f _reako_ did not get the fuck off of her like she'd told him to. He stuck his face all up in hers, drool dribbling down her chin and neck, no doubt making her hair even more tangled and disgusting than it already was. She didn't want to be anywhere _near_ a mirror right now.

"Dude," She went to shove at that bony, exposed-ribcage-chest to fling him off of her, but those spindly fingers latched onto her wrists and pinned her hands down on either side of her head. He growled lowly at her in warning when she tried to bunch her legs up by her chest, attempting to hopefully launch him off of her using her feet. "Get. Offa me." He was so thin and bony that it was hard for her feet to find purchase on his body, her toes glancing off of his sinewy hips with each attempt to kick him off of her. To anyone else (that was still alive) that may have walked by the open office door, it probably would look something like they were grinding on the floor together. _Jesus H. I need to go. Right now._ Her face was burning. She was just gearing up for one more big kick attempt when it felt like her heart stopped beating. Like it faltered without warning, skipped a beat; if she had a free hand she would've put it up to her chest to catch her breath. She would've gasped if she had any air left in her lungs, but it felt like she'd been zapped by lightning and she couldn't function. Her body went limp beneath the alien hovering over her, and she watched in horror as her chest expanded way more than should've been possible. If it did anymore, her sternum would snap in half - it was starting to become painful. Just when she had braced herself for the inevitable agony - a prisoner frozen to observe what was happening inside her body with no way of stopping it - a thin, black hand with sharp claws covered the bulging area. Her heart skipped again. What was he doing? It was pretty obvious by now that the creature before her had some sort of connection with whatever was inside of her; a deeper connection than she felt with it as the things host/mother. It reacted excitedly to his touch - she felt a pull much stronger from inside when he was nearby. She was at a complete loss for what to do. This thing inside of her was going to come out one way or another. It was ready to break through her sternum at the moment, and even if it didn't, it would probably kill or cripple her severely upon birth. Was this it for her? Would she die before she made it home? She had never been more hopeless than she was at this moment.

But something was changing - molding to fit her despair. And it wasn't just the 'baby' she was carrying.

The creature above her massaged his palm over that burning pressure in her chest once again, clawed fingers careful not to tear the thin fabric clothing her body. She would have been worried if she wasn't feeling sick to her stomach - would have cared more if she wasn't already worried about whether or not she would die on this floor _without_ his help. She was alone up here on this ship in deep space, emotionally speaking. Nobody to call a friend; hell, she wasn't even sure how many friends she had back home after all the drug shit went down. They'd probably never even been her real friends anyways, just people willing to shoot up with her, to escape reality in a selfish, body-destroying way. Her family, she had disappointed horribly with all the trouble she'd gotten into back home. They'd be there for her because they were the only ones she could turn to, but emotionally did they even care about her anymore? Were they as sick of her as she was of herself? She felt so alone. And it was all her fault. She could only take the responsibility for what she'd done when she was about to die on a cold, hard floor, millions of miles from Earth, with an alien crouched over her, drooling into her face. If this was truly it, it was pathetic. Pitiful. But maybe it was what she deserved. She'd always been great at letting other people down - why not disappear as the biggest letdown in history?

Despite her current state of despair, she gave a start when the creature above her suddenly grabbed her clothed breasts with both of his bony palms. Though his tough flesh had been cool on her bare skin, his hands felt warm through the fabric. Or maybe she was just running a fever at the moment. She could barely feel the chill of the floor underneath her back anymore. That was probably not a good thing. The monster squeezed her breasts in a way that was vaguely experimental before he gripped hold of the flimsy hospital gown and tore it open.

"Oh, you _fuck,"_ Layla groused weakly; the burning was in her throat now too, but not with the same ferocity as it was in her chest. If she'd been up to par she would've smacked the ever loving shit out of him, claw tipped fingers be damned. He could take those claws and shove them up his ass. A voice in her head reminded her that she had not, in fact, smacked the shit out of him when he'd pulled this grope-y crap the first time. She did her best to ignore said voice. It was really starting to get on her nerves.

From there, the creature did not attempt to rip open her sports bra (which she was grateful for), instead placed his palms on her chest once again, hands on her breasts on either side of the burning sensation, which was right in the middle of her chest. Layla gulped, the moment of roiling nausea passing (which she was also grateful for). _Mister Gropeypants is at it again - I look like a piece of meat that needs to be handled_? "Hey," The word didn't come out quite as firmly as she'd hoped, what with the God awful spell she'd been under a moment ago that she was just now breaking free from. Ignoring her, tail slithering across her ankles and the floor behind them, the creature leaned down to her chest, teeth much closer to her skin than she would have liked. Saliva puddled underneath his jaws, soaking her bra and her body with the steamy liquid. She would've recoiled, struggled, if she wasn't intrigued in the weirdest of ways. Was he going to get this thing out of her? Was he going to slaughter her right her and put her out of whatever misery awaited her? She held her breath, waiting, watching him lower his face further to her body. She balked when he nuzzled his, erm, nose into her chest, right over the point where the sensation was strongest, rubbing his face over the area like some demonic feline. A noise was emitting from him, like a purr but with a hiss underneath. Like an overheating engine. It was weird, like him. Like the way he was rubbing against her; it was apparent he was either trying to get his scent onto her or get her scent onto him. Layla was both creeped out and fascinated; the way he moved was so smooth and graceful, not a trace of humanity in anything he did.

And, she shouldn't have been surprised, but she balked even more when she felt something hard rub against her inner thigh. Something that was not his leg or his tail. "Um, dude...?" He continued his bodily massage on her own body with _his_ body, stretching and arching against her, purring. She felt her panties damp between her legs, but she told herself it would happen to anyone who was being felt up like this, in such a way. The utter savagery of this creature before her - the animalistic nature. She was drawn to it now like a magnet. Maybe she was really going crazy. It was only when one of his hands left her breast, claws trailed down her hip, and she suddenly felt them between her legs that she lurched up off the ground, "Oh no, nuh uh mister-" His other hand on her chest pushed her back down onto the floor without any effort whatsoever. _Okay then. This is fine...?_ Part of her wanted to protest, to fight, but the other part just didn't give a fuck. She was so tired, so done with all the craziness that was going on around her. She might've been the last person alive on this ship, for all she knew. Might as well live it up. If she was going to die, she was going to go after a damn good orgasm. It would probably be better if she didn't live after this- she was starting to disgust herself.

So, without further debate, Layla hiked up her legs around his waist, reaching her hands down so she could slide off her panties. The guy crouched above her grabbed both of her wrists in a tight, inhuman grip, growling lowly at her in a very clear threat: _Don't try anything stupid._

"Oh, too late buddy," She very slowly continued on with her desired end result, his fingers still clamped around her wrists as she continued to move them to her hips. She hooked her fingers into her panties and slowly dragged them down her raised thighs. "This is the stupidest thing I'm ever about to do."

Layla managed to strip her underwear off one ankle, knowing the elastic was probably shot now, but didn't get a change to unhook them from her other ankle before he took action. He abruptly released her wrists and braced his hands on the floor on either side of her shoulders, thin, sinewy forearms trapping her between him and the tile. She let out a gasp when she felt that same hardness poking between her legs insistently, searching for the source of heat. _No foreplay then, I guess._ It didn't matter - best to get to the point before she died. Ain't no way she was dying before the happy ending.

She was practically panting anyways now, ready for the real event, so there was no point in trying to truss the situation up anymore. Clearly, he was ready too - better to just get it on with now before she lost her nerve.

"Okay," she breathed, wriggling underneath his body, " _Come on,"_ As if her laying there with her legs spread and her womanhood wet and ready; she didn't know what the hell the holdup was. _What is he waiting for?_

The large creature above her gave a massive shudder, the effect traveling all the way down to the tip of his tail, but still did not enter her. He just continued to stroke himself back and forth against her, purring and salivating all over her torn open hospital gown. She hoped he didn't think this was how it was going to continue, 'cuz she needed to get a little somethin' somethin' too. She was the one who's life was on the line, after all, " _C'mon,"_ She said a little more forcefully. Did his kind not do this the traditional way? Was there no 'getting it in', just grinding? That was not going to work for her. Layla widened her spread legs, jutting her hips up against his in a silent plea. She reached her hands up to grasp his bony, sinewy hips, trying to pull him to her in the most natural of acts. It was only then that he reacted, but not necessarily in the way that she would have preferred. Quicker than a flash of lightning a hand shot up and bony fingers twisted into the hair on the top of her skull. Her neck ached as her head was yanked back, and a gasp tore from her throat as he reared up and snarled against the side of her neck. _Whoaaaa 'kay, no touching then, I guess!_

" _Oh,"_ The brutal hold in her hair anchoring her head to the floor didn't diffuse the spell of lust that she was under - it intensified it. This was never to be spoken of again, she decided. If she somehow survived this, she was going to pretend this never happened. She would deny it till her last breath. _No, I was not held down on a tile floor with my panties off begging an alien to fuck me, why would I do that you trippin_ '... No one needed to know that she'd actually done it - that she was doing it right now. _God dammit, I've reached a whole new low._ "Just do it already," she groaned. God help her. The hardness rammed into her then without any further warning, and it was a good thing she was practically dripping wet because this guy was packing some serious heat, and it would've torn her in half if she hadn't been prepared. She shut her eyes, toes curling of their own accord - he felt a helluva lot better inside of her than she expected he would, but it was also probably because she was wanton with lust before her possibly soon demise. He thrusted in and out, slowly, rhythmically, hand still wrapped firmly in her hair, and she found it harder and harder to feel sorry that this was possibly the last time she'd ever get it on. This was something else. She knew she would have bruises from the floor, scratch marks from his claws pinning one shoulder to the ground, but that wouldn't matter. Nothing mattered at the moment.

"Oh, _shit,"_ she moaned, hands weakly grasping at his hips, nails digging into hard flesh. Her nails would break off before they pierced his 'skin', but she couldn't help herself. "Oh, oh-" She wished she had a name for him so she could scream it out. She didn't care if whomever or whatever else was left on the ship heard them. Let the whole world hear it. Consider the alarm fucking sounded. His free hand slid underneath her ass to lift it a bit, bringing her into each slow, throbbing thrust. They'd just started, but she already knew she wasn't going to last much longer. Jesus, maybe it wouldn't be such a bad thing if more of him invaded the world - she could sure as hell get used to this. She'd bet her left tit that any other woman or man who experienced this wouldn't mind either. This was fucking heaven.

The creatures tail curled around her left ankle tightly, as though binding her, holding her leg firmly out and down so he could continue to have access to her heat. By the way he was growling and hissing into her neck, his teeth and inner mouth grazing her skin every once in a while, she guessed he was also enjoying himself.

The fire in the pit of her stomach built and built and built, and he further stoked the flame with each stroke of his inhuman, alien dick inside of her. She guessed he was nearing completion too when he dug his nails into her ass cheek, hot breath blowing out against her neck, rank and sweaty, but she didn't give a fuck.

Pinning her flat against the floor, he drove into her harder, slower, like he was trying to draw it out. There was no drawing it out for her - she had reached the point of no return. Clenching around him, making him shudder, she threw her head back against the tile, squeezing her eyes shut as the waves overcame her, starting in her core and flowing out from there, to the top of her head, to the tips of her toes. She took in everything; the smell of him, the feel of him, those nails against her, the hand in her hair, teeth against her neck, barbed tail curling tighter around her ankle. Holy shit - she'd never been able to achieve that solo. Even the one and only time she'd done it with someone else, it had been nowhere near that intensity of this. She whimpered as the waves subsided, her body swaying of its own accord to prolong the sensation. The creature huffed hot breath into her eat, and she felt molten liquid spill into her, filling her. It was a bad time to think about it, but this was how pregnancy generally began. Laying on the floor, spent from what had just happened, she decided she would deal with that later, if that was even anything to worry about. They didn't even have the same chromosomes/DNA, for Chrissake. He shoved himself into her to the hilt as he finally finished pumping out gallons of alien jizz before slumping against her with an inhuman groan. Layla panted beneath him as he panted atop her, the two of them curled together in a sweaty, slimy, disgusting pile on the tile. If she thought she'd needed a shower before, she definitely needed one now. She felt gross, but satisfied. All of her muscles were sore - she didn't even care that her pal hadn't pulled out of her yet. At the moment, life was good.

Then a voice came from the doorway to the office, "What the _fuck_ is going on in here?!"

 **XXXXXXX**

 **Chap 9 woooot moving right along! I sat down and seriously planned out the next couple of chapters for this story so that's great XD organization people, I guess it's a good thing! Also, I read back through and I realized that I never mentioned, I got inspired for Layla's look by Ally Brooke from Fifth Harmony - sorry I forgot to mention it sooner, hopefully it doesn't shatter any expectations of her character XP lmao I mean obviously she's a cracked out, strung out freakshow so she doesn't look like Ally when she's in full makeup, but just a basis for her looks that is who I was inspired by 3 AND this chapter is what we've been waiting for, so I hope you enjoyed~ I wasn't necessarily trying to make it sexy more as just like OKAY FINE TAKE ME I GOT NOTHIN BETTER TO DO lmao sooo yeah, but there may be more to come sooooo ;);););)**


	10. Danger Zone

**"You used to call me a hero**

 **Now I am standing alone**

 **Am I almighty**

 **Living in a danger zone**

 **It is a countdown to zero**

 **You call me misunderstood**

 **I'm high on fire**

 **Living in the danger zone."**

 **~ 'Danger Zone' - Amaranthe**

 **XXXX**

"What the _fuck_ is going on in here?!"

Unmistakably, the voice came from none other than the psychiatrist who's office they had just fucked in. That's right. Layla Susannah Thomas had just _fucked an extraterrestrial on a tile floor in a space ship_. It didn't get much crazier than that.

Apparently the doctor was thinking the same thing, judging by the expression on his face.

"Hi," she groaned, stretching underneath her alien 'friend'. He barely budged; he had to have heard that someone was there observing them, but he obviously didn't care, nor did he perceive the doctor as a threat. He did finally remove himself from her, and she got a glimpse of the Big D for the first time. It was kind of revolting, to be honest, but that also could have been because it was logged with fluids, and it was shiny black just like his body. It disappeared into a sheath between his own legs, retreating back into his body. Revolting, but strangely arousing in the same light. What was the matter with her? Now she was hot for ET. _Great._

 _"What have you done?!"_ The doctor looked legitimately freaked out, his face ghostly pale.

"Um, what does it _look_ like?" Layla sat up on the tile surface, pulling the torn front of her dirty hospital gown over her body to try and at least cover some of herself ."I'm not getting any answers around here, and I'm probably gonna die anyways, so, I figured I'd at least get somethin'."

The doctor shook his head like he didn't understand, looking back and forth between her and the creature, who had assumed a protective crouch position next to Layla, barbed tail curled around his legs. Layla attempted not to flash the other human her goodies (but he'd probably already seen it, standing there, watching them like a creeper) while she pulled her underwear up her legs, keeping her knees bent to try and shield her coochie from him... And what would eventually gush out of her coochie when she stood. What was dripping out of it right now, though, she tried to clench as much as she could to keep the cooling liquid inside of her. Just for the purpose of modesty - this guy in the doorway didn't need to see anymore than he already had. _Pervie old bastard._

"What- What were you _thinking?!"_

Layla rolled her eyes. She wanted to rise up off the floor so he wouldn't be looking down at her so much but she honestly didn't think her legs would support her at the moment. "I was thinking that I'm probably not gonna be _alive_ much longer. I decided to live it up while I'm still breathing. Funny seeing you standing there so high and mighty when it's _your_ fault I'm in this situation."

The man looked down at his feet. He was damn easy to shame.

"Are ya finding any answers down there by your expensive shoes? Any redemption?"

"What do you _want_ from me." The doctor actually had the nerve to look annoyed, eyes blazing as he looked back up at her. Layla bit - she was no way in hell going to let that fly. Not when it was her life on the line.

"I _know_ you didn't just take a tone with me. You'd better be feeling like a worthless piece of shit for what you've gotten yourself involved in - and you damn well should. And I know _Goddamn_ well that you are in no way shape or form in any position to treat me like I'm the fucking crazy one here! Whatever this is-" She gestured to her chest, to the torn open part of her gown "- _you_ did it, and you are the reason I'm in this position. So, _kindly_ , fuck you, that's what I want you to hear. Somehow, when I thought I was going to rehab to get clean, to recover from my addiction to heroin, I actually walked right the fuck through death's door, yet again! 'Cept this time it wasn't at my own hand - this time it's at the hand of a corporate company!"

Now he looked scared again, all of his supposed bravado slipping away; it looked like the doorway to his office was about to swallow him whole. "What are you talking about?"

 _Patta_. She remembered that was his name. _Dr. Richard Patta. Dick Patta. OMG stop it Layla._

She smiled at him, only it wasn't a nice smile, "Oh, yeah, I know." She was _kind_ of bluffing here, admittedly. She didn't know for certain that it was Weyland-Yutani that was responsible. They were a worldwide (and outer space wide) organization that had their hands in pretty much everything remotely scientifically related in the world. It would be hard to convict them even with evidence. Evidence like a woman pregnant with an alien baby. She had to be one hundred percent sure they were involved - it would just be one big honkin' coincidence if they weren't. The way the guard had spoken when he'd been about to shoot her, the look of utter shame as he'd raised the gun... That meant there was something fishy. And she had to get to the bottom of it. She had to expose this for what it really was.

"One of your guards tried to blow my head off earlier today - at least I think it was today; I've been passing out so damn much today I don't even know if it's still today. Anyhow, he felt pretty guilty, was saying some guilty as hell shit as he was trying to murder me. Then my pal here-" She gestured to her alien friend crouched next to her, who was now regarding the doctor with what appeared to be disdain, judging by the way he was growling lowly, continuously "-took _his_ head off. I guess he likes me. I'm just connecting the dots; big slimy egg thing in my room, after Karen freaks out during one of your bullshit sessions, screaming about eggs and how we're all going to die. Giant flying spider with a tail stuck on some guys face, then another one comes down the hall and jumps on _my face._ Then I wake up in a med bay room and see this guy here-" She gestured to the alien again "-slay two people right before my eyes, one of which tried to shoot me in the head. I smell a conspiracy, and it smells like fucking shit." Finally, she stopped, waiting for what he would have to say to that. Only then did she notice that there was a sound in the room, besides the creatures growl - though he himself had fallen silent as well, waiting on what the doctor would say. A low hum that she was assuming came from the lights, or maybe the desktop computer. It was so low that she hadn't realized it was there until she'd been waiting in her own silence for the doctor to speak. After what seemed like an eternity, Dr. Patta swallowed nervously, thin throat bobbing, and held out a hand to gesture for her to follow.

"Come with me."

The doctor was tall and thin, much like her drooly partner in crime, but not quite as tall nor covered in black, armor-like skin. And he didn't have a tail, obviously. Layla had never paid much attention to his looks or features, but now that she was having trouble keeping up with his long strides, she noticed how long his legs were. She didn't dare tell him to slow, though. Whatever he wanted to show her, it was clear that he wanted to get there quickly. She wouldn't complain, not even as she practically jogged along behind him. She tried to ignore both the soreness between her legs and the squelchy, disgusting feeling of warm liquid coating her inner thighs.

"By the way, any chance any of the showers still work around?" she grumbled. Her alien buddy was currently nowhere to be seen, but she knew he probably would not go far. He'd made it quite clear that he was the Keeper of the Layla, and she trusted that he wouldn't let anything happen to her. From another human, at least. She wondered if he'd get offended if she tried to clean herself. If he'd actually been trying to get his scent onto her, he'd succeeded. But she still had to wash everything off. She felt like she'd just spent the night in a cesspool.

"You'll want to wait until after you see this," Dr. Patta urged, continuing on down the hall. It was just like every other hallway in this place, it seemed, but without any doors that she could see on either side of them. Dim lights (which were now flickering like they were in some sort of horror movie), and a bare stretch of space with nothing crowding along the walls. If they'd been in the med bay, there would have been extra gurneys scattered neatly along the walls, medicine cabinets (locked, of course) , and a few emergency defibrillators attached to the walls. She'd been in there so many times when she'd been detoxing, she could probably sketch a layout of the entire medical area just from memory. Ugh. She was glad she wasn't back there. That place had been no joke.

"Where are we?" she asked, stumbling over her own feet. Shoes. That was something else she needed. At least a pair of flip flops.

"We've just passed by the administration offices," Dr. Patta answered. They were finally coming up to a door, the stretch of hall ending a few feet in front of them. The doctor reached into a pocket on his suit jacket (which was the most disgusting brown pattern of plaid she had ever seen, while she was noticing things about him) and produced a keycard with his photo on it.

"I didn't see any doors," Layla stated, finally slowing down as the doctor came to a stop in front of a sliding partition that passed for 'doors' on most of the ship. The office doors were the only exceptions - doors that were actually doors.

"We're in a back hallway," Dr. Patta replied distractedly, waving the keycard in front of the access panel. It turned green; access granted, and the door slid open.

Another question came to Layla's mind as she stared down the even darker hallway before them, "Aren't you worried that we're gonna run into something that's, I don't know, not human?"

"Quite," He agreed, speaking very quietly now, like he was afraid that they would be heard. "I'm hoping that your friend didn't go too far," he admitted.

Layla looked up at him, making a doubtful face, "Well he ain't gonna be protecting you even if he didn't. The only pro to my forced pregnancy is an alien bodyguard." Realizing this, the doctor gulped hard, his face turning that same shade of sheet white again. Sighing with exasperation, Layla stepped first into the dark corridor, "C'mon. Where are we going?"

"The lab is a couple of doors down to the left," Dr. Patta walked so close behind her she thought he was going to grab onto her shoulders in fear. It made her wonder how much he really knew about what was going on. He knew enough to be terrified of walking into a dimly lit hall - he knew something that lurked there that she didn't, she was certain. She would play along, for now. At least until she got this baby out of her.

Her bare feet padded through something cold and sticky on the floor, and she was about to cuss out a string of colorful language about _fucking alien jizz_ when a sharp, metallic smell hit her senses hard. "Holy _fuck,"_ Fear crept up her spine now, the hair on the back of her neck raising - she knew blood when she smelled it.

" _Shh,"_ The doctor did put a hand on her shoulder now, steering her forwards more quickly, "I think most of them are in the hive right now but I'm not certain - there could still be a few scurrying around somewhere,"

"A few _what?!"_ Layla hissed back, picking up her pace, "Women who are in desperate need of some _tampons?!"_

"You are the most _vulgar_ person I have ever met!" the doctor whisper-shouted in her ear.

"Yeah, well, I'd say get used to it but I don't think either one of us are gonna last much longer. Which door?!"

"Here," He pushed her towards the closest door and she dove at it to try and shove it open.

"Locked," she grunted, and the doctor quickly waved his keycard in front of the keypad rapidly until the three lights by the door handle turned green. They both practically broke the door down to get inside, and once they were in Dr. Patta closed the door quickly and quietly behind them, leaning back against it with a deep breath of relief.

Layla clutched at her chest, feeling that same familiar burning starting up again, "Did you say _hive_ back there? Who the hell are _they_ and what exactly do you mean by _hive?"_

Breathing raggedly with relief, Dr. Patta pointed at her, putting his other hand on his knee as he bent forward, "Like your friend - there's others," He took a few more breaths - she wondered if he was an asthmatic or if he'd genuinely been that terrified, "And when they decide where they are going to make their 'home base', so to speak, they build a hive."

Layla processed this information, wondering for the millionth time how the hell she'd managed to walk into this situation. "So, like... insects?"

"Quite."

Layla nodded, pondering, trying to imagine her 'friend' building a hive. What did they build it out of? What did it look like?

The room they were in was dark, like the hallway. They were in the darkest spot by the door; Layla saw more light coming from the back of what she assumed was this... this... "Is this a supply closet?" There were shelves full of buckets, syringes, beakers, goggles, anything even remotely science-y looking. She guessed there was another door or window near the back, and that was where the light was coming from.

Dr. Patta gave a half-hearted shrug in answer to her question. "More or less - it's also another entryway to the lab. This way we didn't have to go to the main entrance, which would be in the med bay." _Oh yeah,_ Layla thought, _Good call, doc_. After another moment of catching his breath, the doctor stood straight and began walking towards the back of the room, "This way, we can get in through here."

Layla followed behind him, glancing around the room. If she'd still been a junkie, she would've snatched all those fucking needles. If she was still a junkie, she would not have been mouth raped by a flying spider with a tail. But, she might've also OD'd by now, so, death had its eyes on her either way, "What's in the lab?"

"Pardon?" Dr. Patta said distractedly, tripping over a bucket on the floor with a scoff.

"Why are we going to the lab? What's in there that's gonna help me?" Layla had to admit, her good patience was running very thin - if you could call the patience she'd had so far _good._

The doctor still didn't answer - now he had reached the door and was trying to open it. With another scoff about 'damn locks' he fished his ID badge out of his pocket once more, holding it in front of the keypad. Managing not to stub her bare toes on anything strewn across the floor, Layla crept over to where he was standing by the door. Judging by his noises of frustration and dismay, she guessed he wasn't having any luck opening the door. "Problem?" she asked, trying to peer past him through the small window in front of them. From what she could see, a brightly lit area with lots of tables and crap piled everywhere lay before them.

"It's not reading my - oh, _damn it all_!" With a ferocity she didn't expect, he attacked the doorknob, like he was going to be able to force it open. He was so thin and reedy, she couldn't imagine him carrying heavy grocery bags, let alone break through that door. He seemed to realize this too, for he stopped rattling the door handle and took a step back, breathing heavy once again. He pointed a shaking finger through the window at their destination, " _There._ In there. That's the lab."

"Yeah, I, uh, thought we'd established that already," Layla crossed her arms across her chest, settling her weight onto her left leg (assuming the pose of attitude), looking down at the floor. "What is so important about getting in there?"

"..." Dr. Patta let out a sob, and Layla had to roll her eyes. _Seriously, he's not the one who about to die, that'd be me._

"Dude, really? Pull it together," she sighed under her breath.

"I can help you," he choked out, turning his head towards her and nodding like he was trying to convince both her and himself of this. "In there, I can."

"Help me what? You gon' get this baby outta my chest?"

"Yes."

Layla breathed a sigh of relief - it didn't even occur to her at this moment exactly what the locked door meant.

Then the momentary bubble of relief burst: "Wait, but the door..."

Dr. Patta nodded with a gulp, "There's another way in,"

 _Through the med bay._ "Oh _shit."_ she said aloud.

"Exactly. They shouldn't harm you - you're carrying one of them, after all. If you should come across any of them they will be more likely to protect you than harm you."

A million thoughts ran through her head at once - was this why her 'friend' was acting the way he was? Why he'd saved her on multiple occasions already? It made sense now. And one of _them_... Well, at least if he was talking about tall, dark and drooly she would know what her 'baby' was going to look like. _This is some fucked up shit._ "Well, what about you? Am I gonna piggyback you over there?"

Looking down at the floor, he shook his head, looking more than a bit shameful, "I'm not going."

Layla uncrossed her arms, hands balled into fists, ready to give him an earful. He didn't give her a chance; he continued, "I won't be safe from them - you only are because you're carrying their future within you. I am not with that advantage. If I am killed, I will not be able to help you."

His words sent a chill up her spine, and with a hard swallow, Layla inquired, "What if I just let it come out on its own?" She was afraid of the answer.

Dr. Patta lifted his head to make eye contact with her, his own gaze somber, "You will die."

While Layla had expected the outcome to be bad, actually hearing it was a different thing entirely. She took a deep breath, turning her head so she could see into the lab. She knew she probably didn't have much time. Every second she wasted was a second off of her life. "Okay, so Plan A. What do I do?"

The doctor held out his badge to her, "Take this. The door is controlled access like most of them in the med bay. Just follow around until you come to the door directly across from where we are - you can see it from here, if you look through the window."

"Yep, got it," Layla took the keycard from him. She eyed his face with suspicion, "And what are you gonna do while I'm gone?"

"I will remain here - it won't take you long to get there, just let me in once you get in yourself."

"And how do I know you're gonna even be here when I get inside?" She couldn't tell whether or not trusting him was a good idea. He was hard to get a read on.

"I won't get far without my badge," he reassured, "I probably wouldn't get far if I were to run into one of those creatures, either." He looked grim, but nodded at her, "You get to that room, and I will get that thing out of you. You have my word."

 **XXX**

 **Notes:**

 **Moving right along this week! 3 I hope everyone is enjoying the story! I'm enjoying writing it~**


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